(AmericanProsperity.com) – The Senate’s Special Committee on Aging chairman and Pennsylvania Democratic Senator Robert Casey called on December 19 on the IRS to explain what is doing to help victims of fraud and financial scams who are now facing massive tax bills. He also said that, on behalf of these Americans, he would probe the agency for information on the strategies and measures in place to assist the victims.
In a letter to IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel, the senator formally asked the agency to provide documents and data by January 18, 2024, showing the effects of GOP lawmakers’ decision to suspend a deduction that helped theft victims in 2017. Casey cited different reports that highlighted the experiences of some elderly Americans who are “on the hook” for massive federal tax bills after numerous “fraudsters” stole their money.
He added that the deduction’s removal made many older adults and their families face an “unacceptable” and “unfair” financial burden. He also said that different investigations into the matter revealed that most of the “fraudsters” have deliberately targeted elderly Americans, as many of them have used the theft deduction before it was eliminated.
According to a Washington Post report, the IRS has consistently declined to make any comment on specific cases, and has only mentioned that any question about tax policy should be made “to legislators.” The agency has also said that the IRs don’t have the authority to resolve any “unintended consequence” from any bill that has been passed into law and is outside of “the flexibilities” granted by the Treasury Secretary.
The personal casualty loss deduction was suspended through 2025; it used to cover theft, earthquakes, fires, and storms. In his letter, Casey requested the IRS to provide a state-by-state breakdown of every taxpayer who used the deduction for theft and casualty losses from 2010 until this year, as well as the amount they claimed. He also wants information on the number of US taxpayers who have communicated with the agency about the issue, and documentation on how the IRS is tracking the effects of the deduction’s removal on taxpayers.
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