Management Advisory Report:
Analysis of Trends in Compliance Activities Through Fiscal Year 2001
September 2002
Reference
Number: 2002-30-184
This report has cleared the Treasury
Inspector General for Tax Administration disclosure review process and
information determined to be restricted from public release has been redacted
from this document.
September
30, 2002
MEMORANDUM FOR
COMMISSIONER ROSSOTTI
FROM: Pamela J. Gardiner /s/ Pamela J. Gardiner
Acting Inspector General
SUBJECT: Final Management Advisory Report -
Analysis of Trends in Compliance Activities Through Fiscal Year 2001 (Audit #
200230019)
This
report presents the results of our review of statistical information that
affects the Collection and Examination functions. The overall objective of this review was to provide statistical
information requested by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Oversight
Board.
In
summary, the IRS’ overall compliance efforts and results were mixed but showed
some positive changes in Fiscal Year (FY) 2001, compared to FY 2000 and other
recent years. Specifically, the level
of compliance activities and the results obtained in most Collection areas in
FY 2001 showed a slight reversal of the downward trend of the preceding
years. Although they have not returned
to pre-1998 levels, enforcement actions and case closures were higher in FY
2001 than in FY 2000. While enforcement
revenue collected increased slightly in FY 2000 and remained the same in FY
2001, the inventory of delinquent accounts and the total amount of uncollected
liabilities has continued to grow.
The
overall percentage of tax returns examined increased slightly in FY 2001, due
to increases in the number of correspondence examinations of individual income
tax returns, primarily for verification of the Earned Income Tax Credit. However, the number and percent of
examinations of corporate and other business returns continued to decrease, as
did the number and percent of field examinations of all other types of
individual, business, and miscellaneous tax returns, such as estate and gift,
fiduciary, excise, and employment tax returns.
We
made no recommendations in this report.
However, key IRS management officials reviewed it prior to issuance.
Copies of this
report are also being sent to the IRS managers affected by the report. Please contact me at (202) 622-6510 if you
have questions, or your staff may contact Gordon C. Milbourn III, Assistant
Inspector General for Audit (Small Business and Corporate Programs), at (202)
622-3837.
Summary of Statistical Information
Appendix I – Major Contributors to This Report
Appendix II – Report Distribution List
Appendix III – Glossary of Terms
Appendix IV – Detailed Charts of Statistical Information
We initiated this review of nationwide compliance statistics pertaining to the Examination and Collection functions at the request of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Oversight Board. We relied on information accumulated by the IRS and did not verify its accuracy. Our data analyses were done between May and July 2002. Much of the data included in this report is a follow-up to Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) reports issued in May 2000 and September 2001. While Appendix IV shows many statistics for the past 6 years, and some for the past 14 years, the purpose of this report is to highlight the changes in compliance activities during Fiscal Year (FY) 2001.
We performed this review in accordance with the President’s Council on Integrity and Efficiency’s Quality Standards for Inspections. Major contributors to this report are listed in Appendix I. A glossary of terms used is included in Appendix III. Detailed charts and tables referred to in the body of this report are included in Appendix IV.
For some time, the number of tax returns filed and the total dollars the IRS has received annually have been increasing with the growing economy. Specifically, in 14 years the number of returns filed has grown by 18 percent, from 140 million in FY 1988 to 168 million in FY 2001. During this same period, the amount of revenue received by the IRS grew by 128 percent, from $935 billion to $2.1 trillion.
For the past several years, compliance activity has decreased due to several factors, including budgetary constraints, the desire to provide increased customer service, and the need to implement and provide additional taxpayer protections and rights mandated by the IRS Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998 (RRA 98). In FY 2001, the IRS began to reverse some of these downward trends. The statistics for FY 2001 generally showed that the downward trends leveled off or began to reverse in most Collection program measurements and some Examination areas.
With increased budgets and hiring authority, staffing levels of revenue officers in the field Collection offices increased from 3,601 in FY 2000 to 3,792 in FY 2001. However, even with hiring authority, staffing in field Examination programs continued to decrease because retirements and other departures exceeded the number of new employees. During FY 2001, the total number of revenue agents and tax auditors decreased from 14,230 to 13,226, a loss of over 1,000 examiners. Furthermore, replacing experienced employees with new hires results in both less examination time available because of the need for training and coaching the new people, and the need to work a greater mix of less-complex cases until the new employees gain experience. In spite of this, the Examination and Collection functions both increased the percentage of time categorized as direct time spent examining tax returns or collecting taxes. This included a significant reduction in the amount of time detailed to Customer Service activities during FY 2001.
While Collection statistics have not returned to their pre-1998 levels, the downward trends have stopped in the last year. Enforcement revenue collected increased slightly in FY 2000 to $33.8 billion and stayed about the same in FY 2001. The use of Collection enforcement tools including liens, levies, and seizures all increased from FY 2000 to FY 2001:
· Liens filed increased from 287,517 to 428,376.
· Levies increased from 219,778 to 674,080.
· Seizures increased from 74 to 234.
The average dollars collected for each staff year in the Collection Field function increased to about $339,000 in FY 2001, returning from the lows reached in FY 1999 and FY 2000 to about the same level as in FY 1998. The number of delinquent accounts closed each year and the number closed by full payment had both been steadily decreasing since FY 1997 but increased slightly in FY 2001.
Since FY 1997, the gap had been widening between the number of new accounts received and the number closed. In FY 2001, that gap was closed slightly. However, the number of delinquent accounts and investigations for unfiled tax returns that the IRS is unable to work continued to grow. During FY 2001, management removed 7.1 million unfiled returns and 1.7 million unpaid tax periods from the Collection inventory to eliminate potentially less-productive cases. These cases may never be worked. In addition, other cases are placed in a “Queue,” which is an inactive inventory of cases that may or may not be worked in the future. At the end of FY 2001, the unassigned Queue inventory still contained 542,000 taxpayers with 1.7 million unpaid tax periods totaling $18.45 billion and 821,000 taxpayers with 2.3 million unfiled tax returns.
When analyzing Examination coverage rates, it is important to recognize the differences in types of contacts that are counted in Examination statistics. Examinations range from an IRS notice asking for clarification of a single tax return item that appears to be incorrect, to a full face-to-face interview and review of the taxpayer’s records. Face-to-face examinations are generally more comprehensive and time-consuming for the IRS and the taxpayers, and typically result in higher dollar adjustments to the tax amount. Thus, caution should be used when combining statistics from the various Examination programs and tax classes into overall Examination rates.
The overall percentage of tax returns examined increased slightly in FY 2001, due to increases in the number of correspondence examinations of individual income tax returns, primarily for verification of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). However, the number and percent of examinations of corporate and other business returns continued to decrease, as did the field examinations of all types of individual and miscellaneous tax returns, such as estate and gift, fiduciary, excise, and employment tax returns.
Individual Income Taxes – Overall, the number of examinations of all types of individual income tax returns had been decreasing from FY 1997 through FY 2000. However, the downward trend was reversed in FY 2001, when the number of examinations in most categories increased slightly from the prior year due to increases in correspondence examinations done by the compliance centers, predominately for EITC issues.
· The number of individual income tax returns examined increased from 618,000 in FY 2000 to 732,000 in FY 2001, with approximately 538,000 of those examined in FY 2001 done by correspondence.
· The number of examinations of individual returns with income under $100,000 increased from 518,218 in FY 2000 to 640,206 in FY 2001, with 500,721 (78 percent) of those in FY 2001 done by correspondence.
· However, the number of examinations of individual returns with income of $100,000 or more decreased from 99,547 in FY 2000 to 91,550 in FY 2001, with 37,114 (40 percent) of those done by correspondence.
Corporate Income Taxes – The number of examinations of Corporate, S Corporation, and Partnership returns has continued to decrease. The total number of U.S. Corporation Income Tax Returns (Form 1120) examined decreased 18 percent, from 43,383 in FY 2000 to 35,705 in FY 2001. The exception to this downward trend was in the examinations of very large corporations with assets of $100 million or more. The number of examinations in those classes increased slightly, from 4,439 to 4,674. The number of partnership returns examined continued its decline, going from 6,539 in FY 2000 to 5,070 in FY 2001.
Other Tax Types (Fiduciary, Employment, Excise, Estate,
and Gift Taxes) – Since the examinations of these types of returns are done
primarily in field offices, the number of these examinations also continued to
decline. The total number of
examinations of these 5 classes of returns fell from 47,807 in FY 2000 to
42,114 in FY 2001.
Appendix I
Major Contributors to This Report
Gordon C. Milbourn III, Assistant
Inspector General for Audit (Small Business and Corporate Programs)
Parker
F. Pearson, Director
Amy L. Coleman, Audit Manager
Joseph F. Cooney, Senior Auditor
Dale E. Schulz, Senior Auditor
Appendix II
Deputy
Commissioner N:DC
Commissioner, Large
and Mid-Size Business Division LM
Commissioner, Small
Business/Self-Employed Division S
Commissioner, Wage and Investment Division W
Deputy Commissioner, Large and Mid-Size Business Division LM
Deputy Commissioner, Small Business/Self-Employed Division S
Deputy Commissioner, Wage and Investment Division W
Director, Compliance, Small Business/Self-Employed Division S:C
Director,
Compliance, Wage and Investment Division
W:CP
Chief Counsel CC
National Taxpayer Advocate TA
Director, Legislative Affairs CL:LA
Director, Office of Program Evaluation and Risk Analysis N:ADC:R:O
Office of Management Controls N:CFO:F:M
Audit Liaisons:
Commissioner, Large and Mid-Size Business
Division LM
Commissioner, Small Business/Self-Employed
Division S
Commissioner, Wage and Investment Division W
Appendix III
ACS – The Automated Collection System (ACS) is a telephone contact system where telephone assistors collect unpaid taxes and secure tax returns from delinquent taxpayers who have not complied with previous notices.
Balance Sheet – A statement of the financial assets and liabilities of a business at a given date filed with corporate income tax returns; used by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to group businesses by size of their assets.
CFf – The Collection Field function (CFf) is the unit in the Area Offices consisting of revenue officers who handle personal contacts with taxpayers to collect delinquent accounts or secure unfiled returns.
CNC – Currently Not Collectible (CNC) indicates the taxpayer still has an outstanding balance due, but it was removed from active Collection inventory since the taxpayer was unable to pay the balance at that time.
CNC closing code 39 (see also “shelved accounts”) – These are cases closed as CNC – excess inventory.
Corporate Income Tax Returns – U.S. Corporation Income Tax Returns (Form 1120) are returns used by corporations to report the corporate income tax.
Employment Tax Returns – Various Form 940 return series (primarily Form 940 and Form 941), filed by businesses to report things such as Employer’s Federal Unemployment Taxes and Federal Taxes Withheld.
Enforcement revenue – This is any tax, penalty, or interest received from a taxpayer as a result of an IRS enforcement action (usually an Examination or a Collection action).
Estate Tax Return – U.S. Estate Tax Return (Form 706) is the form to be filed on certain estates of a deceased resident or citizen.
Examination (Face-to-Face) – Field audits of individuals, partnerships, and corporations that occur either at the taxpayer’s place of business or through interviews at an IRS office.
Excise Tax Return – Quarterly Federal Excise Tax Return (Form 720) is used to report and pay excise taxes on a quarterly basis.
Fiduciary Tax Return – Income tax returns filed by estates and trusts.
Gift Tax Return – United States Gift Tax Return (Form 709) is used to report transfers subject to the Federal gift taxes and to figure the tax due on those transfers.
Gross accounts receivable – Includes all unpaid tax, penalty, and interest on taxpayers’ delinquent accounts.
Individual Income Tax Returns – U.S. Individual Income Tax Returns (Form 1040 series) are annual income tax returns filed by citizens or residents of the United States (U.S.).
Partnership Returns – U.S. Return of Partnership Income (Form 1065) is used to report the income of domestic partnerships.
Queue – An automated holding file for unassigned inventory of lower priority delinquent cases that the Collection function does not have enough resources to work.
Revenue Agent – Employees in the Examination function that conduct face-to-face examinations of more complex returns such as businesses, partnerships, corporations, and specialty taxes (e.g., excise tax returns).
Revenue Officer – Employees in the CFf that attempt to contact taxpayers and resolve Collection matters that have not been resolved by the service centers or the ACS.
S Corporation Tax Return – U.S. Income Tax Return for an S Corporation (Form 1120S) is a return filed by a qualifying Small Business Corporation.
SCCB – The Service Center Collection Branch (SCCB) mails the balance due and return delinquency notices to taxpayers and analyzes and responds to taxpayer correspondence.
Shelved accounts – Delinquent unpaid accounts or investigations of unfiled returns that have been taken out of Collection inventory because they are lower priority.
TDA – Taxpayer Delinquent Account (TDA) is a balance due account of a taxpayer.
TDI – Taxpayer Delinquency Investigation (TDI) is an unfiled tax return for a taxpayer.
TIGTA – The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) is the agency established in January 1999 in accordance with the IRS Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998 (RRA 98) to provide independent oversight of IRS activities.
Tax Auditor – Employees in the Examination function that conduct mostly examinations of individual taxpayers through interviews at IRS field offices.
Appendix IV
Figure 1 was removed due to its size.
To see Figure 1, please go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the
TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 2 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 2, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 3 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 3, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure
4. Examination Staffing at the End of
Each Fiscal Year. Although new revenue agents and tax auditors
were hired in FY 2001, there has still been a net decrease in total staff due
to retirements and other attrition.
Figure 4 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 4, please go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 5. Collection Revenue Officer Staffing. Since
the IRS received funding and authorization to hire in FY 2001, the steady decline
in the number of revenue officers has been reversed.
Figure 5 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 5, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 6. Staff Years Detailed to Customer Service.
What had been a steadily increasing use of Collection and Examination
function personnel detailed to Customer Service during the filing seasons was
significantly reduced in FY 2001.
Figure 6 was
removed due to its size. To see Figure
6, please go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web
Page.
Figure 7. Changes in Direct Time Percentages.
The Collection and Examination functions both increased the percent of
overall time spent collecting taxes and examining returns in
FY 2001.
Figure 7 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 7, please go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 8 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 8, please go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 9 was
removed due to its size. To see Figure
9, please go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web
Page.
Figure 10. Delinquent Accounts and Unfiled Return Investigations Shelved or Surveyed Each Year. In FYs 1999 through 2001, the IRS used special closing codes to remove increasing numbers of unpaid tax periods and unfiled return investigations from the Queue.
Figure 10 was removed due
to its size. To see Figure 10, please
go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 11 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 11, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 12. Number of Taxpayers and Amounts Owed in the Queue. While the number of taxpayers with accounts in the Queue stayed about the same in FY 2001 as in the prior year, the total value of the accounts increased significantly. The average amount owed by taxpayers whose accounts were in the Queue increased from $9,300 in FY 1996 to $34,000 in FY 2001.
Figure 12 was removed due to its size. To see Figure12, please go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 13. Number of Delinquent Accounts Closed Each Year, Not Including Shelved Accounts. The number of delinquent unpaid accounts closed by the Automated Collection System (ACS) increased during FY 2001, but the downward trend continued in the CFf. As more accounts are left in the Queue, there are more closed after voluntary action by taxpayers while in that unassigned status.
Figure 13 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 13, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure14 was removed due
to its size. To see Figure 14, please
go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 15. Liens Filed by the ACS and the CFf.
While the number of liens filed in FY 2001 is only 57 percent of the
number in FY 1996, it is an increase of 155 percent over the low point in FY
1999 and 49 percent more than in FY 2000.
Figure 16 was removed due
to its size. To see Figure 16, please
go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 17. Number of Seizures Made Each Year. While
the number of seizures made in FY 2001 is only 2 percent of the number in FY
1996, it is an increase of 216 percent from FY 2000.
Figure 17 was removed due
to its size. To see Figure 17, please
go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 18 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 18, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 19 was removed due
to its size. To see Figure19, please go
to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 21 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 21, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 22 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 22, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 24 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 24, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 25. Number of Non-business Forms 1040 Under
$100,000 Filed Compared to Number Examined.
The
number of these returns filed under $100,000 has increased steadily, except for
a slight drop in FY 1994, while the number examined has fluctuated. There has been a significant decline in
examinations from FYs 1996 through 2000 but an increase in FY 2001.
Figure 25 was removed due to its size.
To see Figure25, please go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the
TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 27. Examination Coverage of Forms 1040 with Business Income (Excluding Farms). While the number of individual income tax returns filed with business income has steadily increased, the Examination coverage dropped significantly after 1995, until increasing slightly to 128,062 returns in FY 2001.
Figure 27 was removed due
to its size. To see Figure 27, please
go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 28. Examination Coverage of Forms 1040 with Farm
Income. The number of returns filed with farm income has
been steadily decreasing, while the Examination coverage fluctuated from FY
1988 to FY 1996 and then dropped significantly until FY 2000, with a slight
increase to 5,315 returns examined in FY 2001.
Figure
28 was removed due to its size. To see
Figure 28, please go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public
Web Page.
Figure 29. Examination Coverage of All Corporate Income Tax Returns – Percent Change From FY 1988 to FY 2001. While the total number of corporate income tax returns has steadily increased, the total number of examinations has dropped significantly since FY 1997.
Figure 29 was removed due
to its size. To see Figure 29, please
go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 30. Percent of Corporate Income Tax Returns
Examined – Corporations with Assets Under $5 Million. The
percent of corporate returns examined in all asset classes under $5 million has
decreased over the past several years.
However, the coverage in the No Balance Sheet and Assets Under $250,000
categories increased slightly in FY 2001.
Figure 30 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 30, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 31. Percent of Corporate Income Tax Returns
Examined – Corporations with Assets Over $5 Million. The
percent of corporate returns examined in the majority of asset classes over $5
million has steadily declined in the last decade. However, the coverage in the two largest classes (over $100
million in assets) showed a slight increase in FY 2001.
Figure 31 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 31, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 32. Corporations with Assets Under $10 Million – Comparison of Number Filed to Number Examined. The number of corporate returns filed with assets under $10 million has decreased to about 2.4 million returns, but the number examined has declined at a higher rate and dropped from 18,623 in FY 2000 to 14,332 in FY 2001.
Figure 32 was removed due
to its size. To see Figure 32, please
go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 33. Corporations with Assets Over $10 Million – Comparison of Number Filed to Number Examined. The number of corporate returns filed with assets over $10 million has increased to over 57,000 returns, but the number examined has declined significantly since FY 1997, including a drop from 9,212 in FY 2000 to 8,718 in FY 2001.
Figure 33 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 33, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 34. U.S. Income Tax Return for an S Corporation (Form 1120S) – Comparison of Number Filed to Number Examined. The number of Forms 1120S filed has increased to nearly 2.9 million returns, and the number examined was also increasing until FY 1998. However, the number of examinations has dropped significantly since then, falling from 15,200 in FY 2000 to 12,437 in FY 2001.
Figure
34 was removed due to its size. To see
Figure 34, please go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA Public
Web Page.
Figure 35. Examination Coverage of Partnership
Returns. While the number of partnership returns has grown in
recent years to over 2 million filed, the number examined has decreased to
5,070 returns in FY 2001.
Figure 35 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 35, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 36. Examination Coverage of Fiduciary Income Tax Returns. While the number of income tax returns filed by estates and trusts has steadily increased each year, from about 2.3 million in FY 1988 to about 3.5 million in FY 2001, the number of examinations has fluctuated from about 4,500 in the mid-1990s to 7,318 in FY 2000, dropping to 7,070 in FY 2001.
Figure 36 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 36, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 37. Examination Coverage of Employment Tax Returns. While the number of employment tax returns filed has been relatively steady, the number of those returns examined has decreased 69 percent since FY 1996 and fell from 20,074 in FY 2000 to 17,163 in FY 2001.
Figure 37 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 37, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 38. Examination Coverage of Excise Tax Returns. While the number of excise tax returns filed has been relatively steady, the number of those returns examined has decreased 75 percent since FY 1996 and fell from 10,294 in FY 2000 to 8,169 in FY 2001.
Figure 38 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 38, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
Figure 39. Examination Coverage of Estate Tax Returns. While the number of estate tax returns filed has steadily increased each year, from less than 60,000 in FY 1988 to over 120,000 in FY 2001, the number of examinations stayed relatively steady until it began to decline in FY 1996, dropping to 7,707 in FY 2001.
Figure 39
was removed due to its size. To see
Figure 39, please go to the Adobe PDF version of the report on the TIGTA
Public Web Page.
Figure 40. Examination Coverage of Gift Tax Returns. The number of gift tax returns filed has tripled since FY 1988 to over 300,000 returns, while the number of examinations has increased moderately until declining in the last 2 years to 2,005 returns in FY 2001.
Figure 40 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 40, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.
|
|
FY 1996 |
FY 1997 |
FY 1998 |
FY 1999 |
FY 2000 |
FY 2001 |
|
Corporations < $10 Million |
46,568 |
56,323 |
41,818 |
28,268 |
18,623 |
14,332 |
|
Coverage Rate |
1.88% |
2.22% |
1.67% |
1.16% |
0.77% |
0.60% |
|
Corporations $10 Million and Over |
12,891 |
12,972 |
11,830 |
10,537 |
9,212 |
8,718 |
|
Coverage Rate |
25.33% |
24.29% |
21.43% |
19.05% |
16.30% |
15.08% |
|
1120S < $10 Million |
17,524 |
21,290 |
22,935 |
19,043 |
13,477 |
10,869 |
|
Coverage Rate |
0.82% |
0.94% |
0.94% |
0.74% |
0.49% |
0.38% |
|
1120S $10 Million and Over |
1,966 |
2,608 |
2,587 |
2,126 |
1,723 |
1,568 |
|
Coverage Rate |
15.60% |
18.11% |
16.58% |
11.88% |
8.28% |
6.97% |
|
Partnerships |
7,636 |
9,811 |
10,082 |
7,991 |
6,539 |
5,070 |
|
Coverage Rate |
0.49% |
0.59% |
0.58% |
0.43% |
0.33% |
0.25% |
|
Fiduciaries |
4,701 |
5,753 |
6,890 |
6,382 |
7,318 |
7,070 |
|
Coverage Rate |
0.15% |
0.18% |
0.21% |
0.19% |
0.22% |
0.20% |
|
Employment |
56,195 |
60,799 |
40,595 |
28,898 |
20,074 |
17,163 |
|
Coverage Rate |
0.20% |
0.21% |
0.14% |
0.10% |
0.07% |
0.06% |
|
Excise |
32,900 |
24,701 |
19,858 |
12,562 |
10,294 |
8,169 |
|
Coverage Rate |
4.17% |
3.14% |
2.48% |
1.53% |
1.25% |
0.96% |
|
Estates |
11,794 |
11,686 |
10,451 |
9,319 |
8,024 |
7,707 |
|
Coverage Rate |
14.47% |
12.90% |
10.22% |
8.46% |
6.89% |
6.24% |
|
Gift |
1,934 |
2,085 |
2,010 |
2,369 |
2,097 |
2,005 |
|
Coverage Rate |
0.89% |
0.90% |
0.79% |
0.91% |
0.72% |
0.65% |
|
Exempt Organizations |
4,459 |
4,779 |
4,690 |
4,486 |
3,848 |
2,642 |
|
Coverage Rate |
0.81% |
0.83% |
0.73% |
0.70% |
0.49% |
0.36% |
|
Employee Plans |
8,031 |
11,511 |
11,572 |
7,758 |
6,854 |
6,966 |
|
Coverage Rate |
0.86% |
1.25% |
1.30% |
0.80% |
0.69% |
0.70% |
Source: April 2002 IRS report to the Congress as requested
in the House Report accompanying the Treasury, Postal, and General Government
Appropriations Act (P.L. 107-67).
Figure 42. Number of Individual Returns Examined. This IRS-prepared table shows the numbers of returns included in “Examination” statistics and the number of returns included in other compliance contacts for math errors, underreported income issues, and automated substitute for returns due to non-filing. The decline in the number of these other contacts has not been at the same rate as the decline in the number of examinations. However, when added to examinations, the total number of compliance contacts compared to the number of returns filed shows an overall decline in the percentage of returns covered by compliance checks.
Figure 42 was removed due to its size. To see Figure 42, please go to the Adobe PDF
version of the report on the TIGTA Public Web Page.