Tonight starts income tax season…And, do I have some surprises for you!

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Most of you know that the IRS has had its budget slashed by Congress.  The goal (of the majority party) was to make it really hard for the IRS to collect the special taxes one might owe for failure to have health insurance and to punish it for various perceived ills.   Because, after all, every dollar provided to the IRS only provides some $ 11 in return.  (There’s no other agency that has such a return on investment for the US.)

Which would explain why it’s been so difficult to reach a human at the IRS when you get those (scary) audit letters.  And, why it has taken hours for tax professionals to reach an agent on the (supposedly) dedicated phone lines the IRS has for Enrolled Agents and Accountants.  (Admittedly, I reached a human the other day with only a 44 minute wait.  Two years ago that wait was unacceptable.   Now, this was the fastest time in 15 months or more.)

Not YOUR 1040!

You might also know that during last year’s filing season, the IRS simply refused to answer tax-law questions posed by taxpayers.   Plus, the IRS no longer was willing (maybe they also weren’t able, due to the budget cuts) to prepare tax returns for the disabled, the elderly, and low income taxpayers.  After decades of providing such services.

It’s going to get worse.  Because, now, the IRS has been directed by Congress to use collection agencies.  Like you really will believe that the Consolidated Collection Agency is collecting a legal debt from the IRS when they call you at 7:22 in the morning.

Or, those fake eMails you’ve been getting (that we’ve been telling you are fake and to not open them) are now real.  Because the IRS is going to soon use eMail and not snail mail  to notify you of audits, problems. Or questions.  I can just see the criminal element rubbing their hands with glee.    Because now you’ll never know if the eMail you get is authentic or fake.

There is a possibility that the IRS will institute “online accounts” for everyone.   So, you can believe the information is from the IRS.  Like those accounts won’t be hacked.  Or, cloned with similar sounding addresses so the criminal element can harvest your personal information- and your money.  And, don’t you wonder how the poorer folks who lack access to the internet will be able to access this service?

(The IRS now has some 40 million eMail addresses on file for US citizens.  These (lucky?) folks are among the first (maybe even for this year’s tax filing) to be subject to this new “improved” [sic]  process.  And, Heaven forbid you elected to change your eMail provider.   That will mean you will be subject to penalties because the IRS decided which eMail you should have used.   But, no longer do.  Let’s not forget that the IRS may have also mistyped a letter or two as they harvested  those eMail addresses!)

It gets better still. Within five years, you will probably never be able to reach a human by phone or in person.  (OK.  When they send the marshals to put you in jail for non-payment of taxes, those folks should be humans.)   Or, you may have to pay money for the ‘privilege’ of reaching an IRS agent- the IRS calls this ‘pay to play’.  Like paying taxes is a fun game to begin with.  (Don’t’ forget, this is America.  The rich are better than you or me.)

Now, this new plans are a big plus.  For me.  Not for you.   The IRS already recognizes that these “reductions in core taxpayer services” means just one thing.  You “will have to pay third parties to assist” you.   (Or, perhaps, these improvements will just create more tax cheating?)

Thanks, IRS.  I think my income should do just fine under this system.  Even though it is unfair to taxpayers.

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