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The diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) training forced on criminal investigators with the Internal Revenue Service featured content from a transgender professor who called for the “death of whiteness” in an academic journal article.The DEI training, obtained by Judicial Watch, was part of a mandatory continuing education program at the IRS, and began with a section by Dafina Lazarus Stewart titled, “Cultural Inclusion Is About Justice.” Stewart, a transgender-identifying woman, chairs a department at the University of Denver and has focused much of her academic work on “whiteness,” even calling on other academics to “commit to the death of whiteness.”Stewart,...

Tax refunds so far this year are noticeably smaller than they were at the same time last year, according to early data published by the IRS. The average refund check so far this year is worth $1,395 as of Feb. 2, about 29% lower compared to the $1,963 average recorded last year. That is based on nearly 2.6 million tax refunds collectively worth about $3.65 billion. However, the IRS has cautioned taxpayers the average refund amount will likely change in the coming months as more returns are processed.

Millions of Americans awaiting their refund checks could be disappointed, as early data shows that average workers are receiving 29 percent less in tax refunds from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) this year. The average refund check through February 2 is worth $1,395, according to statistics published by the IRS on Thursday. This amount is significantly less compared to the $1,963 received on average last year. Despite the noticeable reduction in the average refund issued this year so far, the IRS does not appear alarmed, noting that the average refund amount is likely to change in the coming months. The...

As Americans file returns this season, some worry about IRS audits amid agency efforts to ramp up service, technology and enforcement. Recent IRS enforcement has targeted high-income individuals, large corporations and complex partnerships. But everyday filers could still face an audit — and certain issues are more prone to IRS scrutiny, experts say. You don’t want to face the “audit lottery,” warned Ryan Losi, a certified public accountant and executive vice president of CPA firm Piascik. Audit rates of individual income tax returns decreased for all income levels from tax years 2010 to 2019, largely due to lower IRS funding,...

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) intends to raise its enforcement personnel by 40 percent by the end of this fiscal year, with revenue agents seeing the largest workforce increase.For fiscal year 2024, the IRS plans to boost enforcement staff by a net 5,462 employees, according to a Jan. 29 report by IRS watchdog Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA). This would take the total number of enforcement personnel at the tax agency to 18,960 by the end of fiscal 2024, which is 40 percent higher than the staffing at the beginning of October 2023.Out of the 5,462 net additions,...

One of the stranger political crusades of the past few years has been the Republican war on so-called woke capital, which has led GOP politicians across the country to adopt a kind of anti-corporate, pro-regulatory rhetoric that one normally associates with the left wing of the Democratic Party. And among the GOP’s favorite targets in this war has been ESG investing—investment funds that take “environmental, social, and governance” considerations into account. For Republicans, ESG funds are a Trojan horse, designed to smuggle progressive attitudes toward climate change, and diversity and inclusion, into executive suites and corporate boardrooms, all under the...

A former IRS consultant was sentenced to five years in prison on Monday for leaking tax information about “thousands of the nation’s wealthiest individuals” to news outlets between 2018 and 2020. Charles Littlejohn, 38, pleaded guilty in October to one count of unauthorized disclosure of tax return and return information after reaching a plea agreement with government prosecutors. The Justice Department did not name the news outlets or individuals whose tax information was disclosed, though the description and timeline of Littlejohn’s actions coincided with reporting in The New York Times and ProPublica about former President Trump’s tax returns. In his...

As the tax season kicks off next week, Americans have several free filing options — and some taxpayers will soon qualify for a new offering from the IRS. Known as Direct File, the agency’s free filing software pilot will begin as an invitation-only service for a group of government workers before rolling out to certain taxpayers in 12 states by mid-March. The software is “simple, secure and free,” Laurel Blatchford, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s chief implementation officer for the Inflation Reduction Act, said in a statement Thursday. Direct File comes after a feasibility report authorized by the Inflation...

A former IRS contractor who leaked a slew of confidential tax records filed by the wealthiest Americans, including those of President Donald Trump, was sentenced Monday to the maximum of five years in prison. Charles Littlejohn pleaded guilty last year to one count of unauthorized disclosure of income tax returns. Littlejohn, 38, admitted that he leaked Trump’s confidential tax information to the New York Times in 2019 and then replicated his work the next year, filtering the tax returns and financial data of thousands of wealthy Americans to ProPublica.

Another apparent “sweetheart deal” negotiated by President Biden’s Justice Department in a politically charged case is drawing scrutiny.Former IRS contractor Charles Edward Littlejohn, who stole and helped publicize the confidential tax records of Donald Trump and an estimated 7,500 other wealthy Americans, could face little or no jail time when he’s sentenced later this month, because the DOJ allowed him to plead guilty to a single felony count.In a new court filing, prosecutors acknowledge the plea deal “does not account for the fact that he leaked thousands of individuals’ tax returns. His [sentencing] range would be the same today if...

The total value of an inheritance is not just a dollar figure; what’s actually in an estate can matter significantly. Trillions of dollars will transfer from one generation to the next in the decades ahead, but not everyone will see their inheritance as a help; for some, it may actually be a headache.The fact is, some assets are better than others to leave behind. Others can cause arguments between family members, or may have hidden costs. Sometimes, let’s face it, your kids just don’t want your stuff.You can prevent issues from happening though with thoughtful estate planning. “A lot of...

Two owners of an iconic Philly cheesesteak shop were sentenced to prison for tax fraud Thursday. Nicholas Lucidonio, 57, and Anthony Lucidonio Sr., 84, who owned and operated Tony Luke’s, a cheesesteak restaurant in South Philadelphia, have both been sentenced to 20 months in prison for “their decade-long conspiracy to defraud the IRS,” according to a press release from the Department of Justice (DOJ). The Lucidonios hid more than $8 million in cash receipts from the IRS from 2006 to 2016, according to the release. They did so by “among other things, depositing only a portion of the cash they...

America's tax debts are spiraling after the IRS put a halt to chasing payments during the pandemic. Some 18.6 million taxpayers owed the IRS $316 billion in overdue taxes at the end of 2022, up from 16.8 million owing $308 billion in September 2019. And the figures are only set to grow this year. Experts are warning that workers who have been used to getting refunds in the last few years can swing into money owed for 2024. The trend has been fueled by the end of pandemic tax relief and also a booming stock market which puts more investors...

Federal prosecutors are asking a judge to sentence a former IRS contractor to five years in prison for leaking the tax records of former President Donald Trump and other wealthy Americans to the media. In court papers Tuesday, prosecutors urged the judge to impose the statutory maximum of five years in prison for Charles Littlejohn of Washington, D.C., after he pleaded guilty in October to one count of disclosing tax return information without authorization. Littlejohn also admitted to leaking tax records belonging to “over a thousand” other wealthy people. In a plea agreement last year, government attorneys estimated eight to...

Remember when Sen. Joe Manchin turned his back on those who had supported him against the far-left onslaught by voting to pass the so-called Inflation Reduction Act? And remember when that boondoggle bill contained over $80 billion in new funding for the IRS? At the time, we were all assured that the funding would go to good use, expanding the enforcement ability of the IRS, raking in billions upon billions of dollars in unpaid taxes from (in my best Bernie Sanders voice) the "millionaires and billionaires." If you're wondering how that turned out, we've got some hard numbers that give...

Nearly 5 million taxpayers who have unpaid tax bills from 2020 and 2021 will have almost $1 billion in penalty fees waived by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The IRS announced penalty relief in December for taxpayers who had outstanding tax bills but were not sent automated collection reminder notices during the pandemic. Though the notices did not go out in 2020 and 2021, the failure-to-pay penalty accrued for taxpayers who did not fully pay their bills. "As the IRS has been preparing to return to normal collection mailings, we have been concerned about taxpayers who haven't heard from us...

John Anthony Castro, a Texas man known for his legal efforts to challenge former President Donald Trump’s eligibility for the 2024 presidential ballot, has been arrested on charges related to filing false tax documents. Castro, who filed challenges in 27 states against Trump’s ballot placement, was indicted last week on 33 counts of aiding the preparation of false tax returns. Castro operated a virtual tax preparation business that deceitfully inflated tax refunds for clients, The Hill reported. Castro was the proprietor of Castro & Company LLC, a digital tax preparation firm with establishments in Orlando, Mansfield, and Washington, D.C., per...

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) plans to roll out a free way to file federal taxes, much to the chagrin of tax preparation firm TurboTax. The IRS is launching a pilot plan, known as Direct File, that will offer a free way to submit taxes for U.S. workers. In December, the agency published its plans for an in-house filing system that taxpayers can use to submit their federal tax returns at no cost. Residents of 12 states that meet certain income criteria will be able to try the new service. To qualify, filers need to opt for the standard deduction...

A Texas man who filed over two dozen challenges to former President Trump’s ballot eligibility was arrested Tuesday on charges alleging he filed 17 sets of false tax documents to the IRS. John Anthony Castro was indicted last week on 33 counts of aiding the preparation of false tax returns. Prosecutors claim he ran a virtual tax preparation business that provided customers with tax returns beyond what they were actually owed, defrauding the government. “Castro would promise a significantly higher refund than taxpayers could receive from other preparers and on many occasions, offered to split the additional refund with taxpayers,”...

IRS provides tax inflation adjustments for tax year 2024. TLDR — your taxes will DOUBLE unless you’re married, in which case your taxes will TRIPLE. via IRS: IR-2023-208, Nov. 9, 2023 WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today announced the annual inflation adjustments for more than 60 tax provisions for tax year 2024, including the tax rate schedules and other tax changes. Revenue Procedure 2023-34 provides detailed information about these annual adjustments.