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Tax Administration: IRS' Abatement of Assessments in Fiscal Years 1995-98

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Report Type Reports and Testimonies
Report Date June 4, 1999
Report No. GGD-99-77
Subject
Summary:

Every year, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) abates tens of billions of dollars in tax, penalty, and interest assessments. That is, IRS reduces these assessments on taxpayers' accounts. Abatements are important because they can correct tax, penalty, and interest amounts that have been overassessed because of errors by IRS or taxpayers. IRS has not developed comprehensive information on the number and amount of various types of past abatements. This report discusses, for individual and business tax returns, (1) the number and the amount of various types of tax, penalty, and interest abatements made during fiscal years 1995 through 1998 and (2) selected characteristics of the abatements, such as the tax years of abated assessments, taxpayers' use of paid tax preparers, and IRS' actions, such as audit or collection efforts, before abating assessments.

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