IRS Recovers $1.3 Billion from Wealthy Taxpayers
The IRS has collected $1.3 billion in unpaid taxes from high-income individuals as part of enforcement efforts funded by the Inflation Reduction Act. The agency is targeting wealthy taxpayers who have not filed tax returns since 2017, with significant collections reported in recent months.
| Score | Value |
|---|---|
Scale | 7 |
Novelty | 6 |
Positivity | 6 |
Reliability | 8 |
Actionability | 3 |
Society | 7 |
Journalism | 5 |
Highlights
- The IRS has recovered $1.3 billion in unpaid taxes from wealthy individuals since late 2023.
- This recovery is part of new enforcement initiatives funded by the Inflation Reduction Act.
- The IRS is targeting 125,000 high-income individuals who have not filed tax returns since 2017.
- In the first six months of this initiative, 21,000 taxpayers have filed their returns, resulting in $172 million collected.
- Approximately 80% of 1,600 millionaires with overdue taxes have made payments, totaling over $1.1 billion.
Perspectives
- Some Republican lawmakers express concerns that the increased IRS funding and enforcement efforts may unfairly target middle-class taxpayers, arguing that the agency's focus should not be on auditing ordinary Americans.
- Supporters of the IRS initiatives argue that the increased funding is necessary to ensure that wealthy individuals pay their fair share of taxes, highlighting the historical decline in audit rates for high-income earners.