Discussion Groups provide an in-depth discussion of a topic by a small group of invited discussants selected in advance by the Annual Meeting Program Committee. In addition to the invited discussants, additional discussants were selected through a Call for Participation. There will be limited seating for audience members to observe the discussion groups on a first-come, first-served basis.
Enforcement
and effective administration of tax laws pose challenges for every country,
developed and developing. Moreover, how the tax law is administered determines
the substantive effects of the laws on the books.
In the
United States, the agency responsible for helping taxpayers voluntarily comply
with federal tax laws and for coercing the recalcitrant into complying—the
Internal Revenue Service (IRS)—is not only underfunded, its image was badly
damaged by what the media often refer to as the “IRS targeting scandal.” The
IRS is thus in crisis. Over the last couple of years, it has reduced service to
taxpayers, reduced enforcement efforts, experienced hacks of its confidential
taxpayer information, and sent out billions of dollars in fraudulent refunds
claimed by identity thieves. Other tax collection agencies, both in U.S. and
abroad, also struggle with resource and cybersecurity issues.