Recently, the Senate had hearings on the IRS and uncovered instances of shocking abuse. You could be ruined. And a recent USA Today newspaper poll bore out the testimony at the hearing in that some 69 percent of those who were surveyed said that they felt the IRS often abuses its power. Their commission recommendations include less IRS emphasis on tax enforcement, and more on helping people to understand the tax laws and to comply with them. They call for an independent citizen board of overseers to take the IRS out from under the political appointees at the Treasury Department.
Audits are something that are terrifying for too many innocent taxpayers.
And the commission reforms would require IRS agents to explain the reasons for audits, explain taxpayers' rights before audits, and would provide a toll-free number to register complaints of IRS misconduct. Ultimately, the tax code has to be simplified. And we need to find ways to do this that will lessen the burden on low and middle-income taxpayers. We're always going to have to be collecting taxes one way or another, no matter how simple we make the thing, and we need to have an IRS that respects citizens rather than terrorizing them. That means it's time for your Porker Award, Rep. Petri.