The IRS has not been able to convince professional tax preparers that electronic filing is preferable to paper filing. For most professional tax return preparers, this is not yet the case. More achievable is the goal of filing 80 percent of all tax and information returns electronically by 2007. However, according to the report, more initiatives and incentives are required to meet this goal. This credit is supported by the Clinton Administration.
More hope is held out for Internet-based filing.
The IRS has called for the private sector to make free Internet-based tax return preparation available. If the private sector does not step forward, says the IRS, it may have to enter the market with its own Internet-based solution. It does not feel that the IRS, which is in the business of auditing tax returns, should also get into the business of preparing them. Some companies in the private sector have objected to the IRS call for free Internet-based tax return processing. However, already, free tax return preparation is available on the Internet.