Economy Analysis IRS Admits Tax Code Is Too Complex to Enforce

In an ideal world the federal government would collect all of the taxes that it was owed—and then spend only what it intended to. Unfortunately, things aren’t that simple. Instead, every year we have a “tax gap,” which is the difference between what the government believes it is owed, and what it actually takes in, and “improper payments,” which refers to the government sending money to those it doesn’t mean to (paying benefits to deceased persons, for example). The tax gap and improper payments serve as reminders that the federal government is not very good at administering complex programs. Read more...