Taxpayers 'Gamble' by Committing Fraud, Even With Diminished IRS

Anyone thinking about pushing the boundaries of tax law should remember that there's no federal statute of limitations on prosecuting fraud, even with weakened IRS enforcement, said Carolyn Schenck, who spent 20 years at the agency primarily combating tax evasion. "If people think that a current administration or a past administration might go soft on tax fraud, that's still an awfully big gamble," said Schenck, who's now at Caplin & Drysdale. "And I know that that's not one I personally would want to take." The IRS is coming off a tumultuous year with deep staffing cuts from the Trump administration's efforts to downsize the federal government and a parade of new commissioners. But increasing IRS staff and resources would be one of the best ways the government could combat fraud and collect more of the money it's owed, Schenck said. On this episode of Talking Tax, Schenck sat down with Bloomberg Tax reporter Erin Schilling to discuss what Trump administration workforce cuts mean for IRS enforcement and how the agency could improve its efforts to go after illegal tax shelters, even with a diminished staff. Do you have feedback on this episode of Talking Tax? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.