[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 22 (Thursday, March 2, 2000)]
[House]
[Page H635]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           THE IRS IS A MESS

  (Mr. GIBBONS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. GIBBONS. Mr. Speaker, some recent disturbing news. Earlier this 
week, the General Accounting Office reported that the IRS, the Internal 
Revenue Service, America's tax collecting agency, does not know how 
much money it is collecting or, worse yet, where the money is going.
  The GAO audit showed that the IRS frequently gives improper refunds 
and fails to promptly correct its own errors, costing the American 
taxpayers several billions of dollars every year.
  Mr. Speaker, if the IRS cannot keep track of its property, income, or 
budget, how can the American taxpayer feel confident that they are not 
getting ripped off?
  Even more disturbing, Mr. Speaker, is that the IRS is vulnerable to 
serious computer security problems, placing the financial and secure 
information of every American taxpayer in jeopardy.
  Mr. Speaker, it is time that the IRS clean up its act. The American 
taxpayer is required to be diligent in paying its taxes. The IRS must 
be diligent in its duty to the American people, or we should get rid of 
it.
  I yield back the unbelievable sloppy practices of our Nation's tax 
collector.

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