The only certainties in life are death and taxes. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is a bureau of the United States Treasury Department in charge of administering the tax laws of the United States as passed by Congress. This includes collecting and refunding taxes to both individuals and businesses. In 2003, the IRS collected almost $2 trillion dollars in revenue while processing more than 222 million tax returns. Considering that it only cost taxpayers 48 cents for each $100 collected by the IRS, the IRS could be called the world's most efficient tax administrator.
The Divisions of the IRS
Most daily operations are carried out in the district offices and service centers located throughout the United States. As a result of the IRS Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998, the operations of the IRS are divided into the following departments: Wage and Investment Division, Small Business / Self-Employed Division, Large and Mid-Size Business Division, tax-exempt and Government Entities Division, Appeals Division, and Criminal Investigations. Each of these different departments serves different types of taxpayers.
The Wage and Investment division is responsible for dealing with approximately 116 million taxpayers who file individual and joint tax returns. The Small Business / Self Employment Division handle about 45 million small businesses and self-employed taxpayers. The Large and Mid-Size Business division serves corporations with assets of more than 10 millions dollars. The tax-exempt and Government Entities division deals with employee benefit plans, tax-exempt organizations (charities, social welfare groups), and governmental entities. The Appeals Division deals with people or businesses disputing tax bills, and finally, the Criminal Investigation Division works with tax fraud.
When the IRS reorganized in 1998, it was the biggest form of modernization in the organization in over 50 years. Because tax laws are changed frequently, this organization is constantly enacting new policies, procedures, and regulations so as to better serve the American people.
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By Jamie Ward
