An internal audit found that IRS tax advisers — you know, the ones you’re encouraged to call in case you have a question on your 1040, etc.? — answered questions correctly on tax law only 57% of the time. Auditors posed as taxpayers, calling the IRS hotline.
IRS employees provided complete and correct answers to 45 percent of the questions asked by auditors, and correct but incomplete answers in 12 percent of the cases.
IRS employees told the auditors to do their own research in IRS publications to find the answers in response to 12 percent of the questions, despite an IRS policy banning the practice.
Incorrect answers were given to 28 percent of the questions. The questions most commonly answered incorrectly dealt with the earned income tax credit, education credit and dependents.
The IRS responded by arguing that the audit mistakenly counted cases where callers were referred to other publications or couldn’t get any help. Excluding those, the accuracy rate leapt up to a staggering 67% (which, to be fair, the IRS admitted was “inadequate”).
Remember that, next time you get audited.
(via Ipse Dixit)