The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) is recommending that the IRS expand the criteria used to refer potential criminal cases for investigation for certain employers that fail to remit payroll taxes to the IRS. TIGTA found that tax noncompliance in employment tax matters is growing, and as of December 2015 the IRS is owed nearly $46 billion in unpaid employment taxes, interest, and penalties.
Business owners, financial officers, and those with certain signature and other authority on business bank accounts can be held responsible for a significant portion of unpaid employment taxes. TIGTA believes that by seeking criminal sanctions against noncompliant taxpayers, others will be deterred from shirking responsibility concerning these important taxes.
Read TIGTA’s full press release here.
