Summary: GAO provided basic information concerning its access to and use of foreign and domestic tax returns and return-related information.
GAO: (1) has the authority to examine tax returns and return-related information when auditing the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and certain programs or activities of other federal agencies; and (2) needs access to information which concerns IRS international tax activities. GAO found that: (1) through the audits of IRS programs and activities, it determines whether IRS is administering tax laws in an economical, efficient, and effective manner; (2) the identity of particular taxpayers is not a factor in selecting returns for review; (3) it selects a random sample of returns that fall within a particular IRS program and reports the results of its work in a manner that ensures that specific taxpayers are not identified; (4) the authority to disclose tax information, either directly or indirectly, is extremely limited; (5) before GAO can begin an audit that has not been specifically requested, it must notify the Joint Committee on Taxation of the subject matter of the audit and its plans for examining the tax information; and (6) it uses audits which involve tax treaty information to determine whether U.S. agencies are carrying out their responsibilities in the most effective manner, subject to the same confidentiality, disclosure, and safeguard requirements as domestic tax information.
