,i #aafth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #fjgf ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,march #d1 #bjbj,mr4 ,de,fazio 7for himself1 ,ms4 ,schakowsky1 and ,ms4 ,norton7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,appropriations ,a ,,bill ,to provide for increased audits1 improved technology infrastructure1 and increased staff for the ,internal ,revenue ,service for the purpose of reducing the tax gap1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,,irs ,enhancement and ,tax ,gap ,reduction ,act of #bjbj4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,according to the ,office of the ,taxpayer ,advocate1 the difference between tax liabilities owed to the ,internal ,revenue ,service and those liabilities actually collected by the ,,irs1 known as the tax gap1 averaged roughly #cha1jjj1jjj1jjj annually in unpaid taxes from #bjaa to #bjac4 7#b7 ,recent studies project that the tax gap will be a cumulative #g1ejj1jjj1jjj1jjj between #bjbj and #bjbi4 7#c7 ,individual income taxes are the largest group of uncollected taxes before audits1 representing about #cad1jjj1jjj1jjj4 7#d7 ,estimates suggest that at least #gj percent of the tax gap comes from underpayment by the top #a percent4 7#e7 ,in #bjaa1 more than #ab percent of individuals making #a1jjj1jjj or more annually were audited4 ,in #bjah1 only #c4b percent of such individuals were audited4 7#f7 ,for the eighth year in a row1 ,,irs tax enforcement declined4 ,the ,,irs audited #j4de percent of personal income-tax returns1 the lowest level in at least four decades4 7#g7 ,individuals are about half as likely to be audited now compared to #bjaj4 7#h7 ,audit rates for those making #aj1jjj1jjj or more have fallen from more than #ad percent in #bjag to roughly #f4e percent in #bjah4 7#i7 ,over the course of the past decade1 the number of income tax returns has increased by roughly nine percent4 7#aj7 ,businesses are being audited at a rate of #a4f percent1 a near record low4 ,the ,,irs had set a target of #b4b percent4 7#aa7 ,audit rates for the largest corporations in #bjaa were more than #ij percent4 ,now1 they are closer to #ej percent4 7#ab7 ,business taxes in #bjai are on track to be the lowest portion of ,federal revenue on record1 accounting for #c4e percent of all ,federal tax revenue through the third quarter of #bjai4 7#ac7 ,in #bjaj1 corporate taxes accounted for #i percent of ,federal revenue4 7#ad7 ,the ,tax ,cuts and ,jobs ,act has pushed business taxes to record lows1 and1 according to the ,institute on ,taxation and ,economic ,policy1 #ia of the ,fortune #ejj companies paid #j in income tax in #bjah despite turning a profit4 7#ae7 ,according to a new report from the ,office of the ,taxpayer ,advocate1 the average ,united ,states household is paying an annual surtax of more than #c1jjj to subsidize taxpayers who aren't paying all that they owe4 7#af7 ,according to the ,congressional ,budget ,office1 the ,,irs's budget is roughly #bj percent below its peak #bjaj inflation-adjusted budget4 7#ag7 ,according to the ,,irs1 the agency has lost nearly #cj1jjj full-time positions since #bjaj4 7#ah7 ,according to the ,,irs1 #ca percent of its workers will retire within the next five years4 7#ai7 ,despite this1 the agency has also seen increased workload due to the implementation of the ,affordable ,care ,act and the ,tax ,cuts and ,jobs ,act4 7#bj7 ,studies have shown that investing in enforcement and tightening rules could generate more than #a1jjj1jjj1jjj1jjj over a decade4 7#ba7 ,the ,federal ,government estimates that each additional dollar spent on tax enforcement could yield more than #d in revenue4 7#bb7 ,,irs data demonstrates that an extra auditor-hour spent auditing returns for those earning #e1jjj1jjj or more raises nearly #e1jjj4 7#bc7 ,in fiscal year #bjah1 the ,,irs collected nearly #c1ejj1jjj1jjj1jjj on a budget of about #aa1dcj1jjj1jjj4 7#bd7 ,according to a #bjah study by the ,congressional ,budget ,offce1 increasing ,,irs funding by a total of #bj1jjj1jjj1jjj over #aj years could increase revenue by a total of #ee1jjj1jjj1jjj4 #c4 ,improving resources available to the ,internal ,revenue ,service to reduce the tax gap 7a7 ,improving audits 7#a7 ,in general ,there is appropriated #e1jjj1jjj1jjj for an additional amount for the ,department of the ,treasury--,internal ,revenue ,service--,enforcement account1 for each of fiscal years #bjba through #bjcj-- 7,a7 for the salaries and expenses of additional staff to increase audits to not less than the minimum levels described in paragraph 7#b72 and 7,b7 for necessary expenses for tax enforcement activities in order to determine and collect owed taxes1 to conduct criminal investigations1 and to enforce criminal statutes related to violations of internal revenue laws and other financial crimes4 7#b7 ,auditing levels ,the minimum levels described in this paragraph are as follows3 7,a7 ,fifty percent of individuals or joint returns with gross income of not less than #ajj1jjj1jjj4 7,b7 ,thirty-five percent of individuals or joint returns with gross income of not less than #aj1jjj1jjj and less than #ajj1jjj1jjj4 7,c7 ,twenty percent of individuals or joint returns with gross income of not less than #e1jjj1jjj and less than #aj1jjj1jjj4 7,d7 ,ten percent of individuals or joint returns with gross income of not less than #a1jjj1jjj and less than #e1jjj1jjj4 7,e7 ,ninety percent of corporations with gross income of not less than #bj1jjj1jjj1jjj4 7,f7 ,fifty percent of corporations with gross income of more than #a1jjj1jjj1jjj and less than #bj1jjj1jjj1jjj4 7b7 ,improving technology infrastructure ,there is appropriated for each of fiscal years #bjba through #bjcj1 for efforts collecting and protecting taxpayer information1 reducing tax-related theft and fraud1 and modernizing the technology infrastructure of the ,internal ,revenue ,service-- 7#a7 #c1hjj1jjj1jjj for an additional amount for the ,department of the ,treasury--,internal ,revenue ,service--,operations ,support account2 and 7#b7 #ejj1jjj1jjj for an additional amount for the ,department of the ,treasury--,internal ,revenue ,service--,business ,systems ,modernization account4 7c7 ,enhancing taxpayer services ,there is appropriated #b1ejj1jjj1jjj for an additional amount for the ,department of the ,treasury--,internal ,revenue ,service--,taxpayer ,services account1 for each of fiscal years #bjba through #bjcj1 for the salaries and expenses of additional staff to achieve adequate staffing levels to provide taxpayer services1 including pre-filing assistance and education as well as filing and account services4