FEDERALhearing transcript

Senate Hearing: Protecting Taxpayers from Tax Scams

Original title: PROTECTING TAXPAYERS FROM SCHEMES AND SCAMS DURING THE 2015 TAX FILING SEASON

January 1, 2016

tax fraud consumer protection identity theft tax administration cybersecurity

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The Frame

What this does

The hearing highlights the ongoing efforts by federal and state agencies to prevent tax-related identity theft and fraud, which result in billions of dollars in losses to the U.S. Treasury and individual taxpayers annually.

Who is mentioned in the record

Potentially affected actors named in the source documents. Mention is not a position.

Taxpayers

Taxpayers are the primary targets of the scams discussed and are the focus of the protective measures proposed.

U.S. Treasury

The Treasury experiences significant financial losses due to fraudulent tax filings and scams.

What changed

Last recorded activity January 1, 2016.

What's next

Next step not available in the current record.

Summary

The Senate Finance Committee held a hearing on March 12, 2015, to address the rise in criminal activity targeting taxpayers through phone and computer-based tax scams. Federal and state officials discussed strategies to combat these schemes and protect taxpayers from financial loss.

Key Facts

The hearing focused on criminal activity involving telephone and computer-based tax scams.
Criminals use fear, intimidation, and confusion to steal money from taxpayers.
The Degen family from Taylorsville, UT, lost $15,800 in savings to a tax scam.
The U.S. Treasury loses tens of billions of dollars annually to tax-related criminal activity.
The hearing included testimony from the Department of Justice, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), and state tax officials from Indiana, Utah, and Oregon.

Frequently Asked Questions

What was the purpose of this hearing?

To examine the rise of tax-related scams and discuss how federal and state agencies can better protect taxpayers.

Who testified at the hearing?

Officials from the U.S. Department of Justice, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, and tax commissioners from Indiana, Utah, and Oregon.

Why It Matters

News Coverage

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Discoveries

Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.

policy shift90% confidence

Focus on Taxpayer Protection

The hearing marks a coordinated effort between federal and state tax authorities to address the growing threat of digital and phone-based tax scams.

Department of Justice Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration Indiana Department of Revenue Utah State Tax Commission Oregon Department of Justice

Connected Entities

personOrrin G. Hatch“Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance”Map →

personRon Wyden“U.S. Senator from Oregon”Map →

personMike Alley“Commissioner, Indiana Department of Revenue”Map →

personCaroline Ciraolo“Acting Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division, Department of Justice”Map →

personTimothy P. Camus“Deputy Inspector General for Investigations, TIGTA”Map →

personJohn L. Valentine“Chairman, Utah State Tax Commission”Map →

personDegen family“Victims of a tax scam in Taylorsville, UT”Map →

personEllen M. Klem“Director of Consumer Outreach, Oregon Department of Justice”Map →

Sources

Open source document

www.govinfo.gov

Analysis Score

0–100

Significance65
How much this matters to a regular citizen
Controversy10
Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
Entertainment20
Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
Buzz15
Current news / social attention level

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