Thursday, September 27, 2012
TIGTA: 88 Federal Agencies Have Not Paid Employment Taxes or Filed Returns
The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration today released A Concerted Effort Should Be Taken to Improve Federal Government Agency Tax Compliance (2012-30-094):
Federal agencies are exempt from paying Federal income taxes; however, they are not exempt from meeting their employment tax deposits and related reporting requirements. As of December 31, 2011, 70 Federal agencies with 126 delinquent tax accounts owed approximately $14 million in unpaid taxes. In addition, 18 Federal agencies had not filed or were delinquent in filing 39 employment tax returns. Federal agencies should be held to the same filing and paying standards as all American taxpayers.
https://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2012/09/tigta-109-federal-agencies.html
Comments
If only the government had some way to collect from its own agencies.
Posted by: Woody | Sep 28, 2012 9:22:05 AM
This is what you get.
This is what you get.
When your Treasury Secretary claims ignorance of Schedule SE, but is deemed to be too smart not to get the job.
Yes, the government dysfunction is clearly caused by the rich getting away with literal murder as the tax brackets not too damn high enough.
Posted by: Anthony E. Parent | Sep 28, 2012 8:35:36 AM
The root problem in this bizarre world seems to be that once an "agency" CFO fails to report or pay the employee withholding, the tax becomes delinquent. Taxes may be paid only out of current fiscal year appropriations. Taxes for prior years are not authorized for payment from current appropriations. Apparently the delinquencies have been at least as high as $400 Million, although the exact amount is not clear from the report. Why do payroll in-house? Why would they not eliminate all the inefficient federal employees, their retirement and fringe costs, and incompetence necessary to process their own payroll? Use ADP or some other outside entity that knows how to do it efficiently and effectively.
Posted by: Philadelphia | Sep 28, 2012 6:46:43 AM
This is a report that refers to prior reports and other entities, audits, and processes attempting to bring federal agencies into tax compliance for employee withholding. The report does not define what "agencies" are. The names of the specific agencies are redacted. The report is addressed to the IRS department responsible for these federal collections and compliance enforcement, which is the Small Business/Self-Employed Division of the IRS. Why does it not occur to anyone in Congress or the executive branch to abolish some of the governmental clutter? When things reach this level of absurdity, it should be a tipoff that the beast is too big and unwieldy.
Posted by: Philadelphia | Sep 28, 2012 6:19:44 AM
I am not able to see the agencies in the report. Anyone else have that issue?
Posted by: Jake | Sep 28, 2012 5:22:54 AM
Make the directors of those agencies personally responsible for interest and penalties, like those charged to private companies, and you'll see more responsibility.
Posted by: Woody | Sep 27, 2012 6:49:35 PM
The report does not define what "agencies" are. The names of the specific agencies are redacted.
Posted by: find me a job | Oct 20, 2012 2:00:51 AM