Telephone numbers of general interest include (area code 202): General inquiries (public) ..... General inquiries (Congressional) .707-5522 .707-5700 Requests for specific CRS products (a product number is needed) .....707-7132 Ready reference questions (CRS Hotline). B. General Accounting Office .7.07.-7.100 The U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) assists the Congress in carrying out its legislative and oversight responsibilities by evaluating or auditing Federal agencies. In the tax area, GAO does two types of reviews-those that evaluate IRS's administration of the tax system and those that analyze tax policy GAO reviews start through three main avenues. First, GAO initiates some reviews based on an annual planning process that considers factors such as congressional interest, programs' significance and opportunities to have an impact. Second, legislation sometimes mandates a specific review. Third, congressional committees, subcommittees or members ask GAO to undertake reviews. Committee requests always result in some type of review while those from individual members are honored to the extent possible. To complete these reviews, from time to time GAO may need access to information from tax returns. Tax-writing congressional committees grant this access based on established procedures to protect confidentiality. One such procedure is to select transactions through random sampling. It is GAO's policy not to investigate and report on the tax status of specific taxpayers identified for GAO by others. To further protect confidentiality, GAO staff must adhere to various procedures and requirements, and GAO findings must be reported in the aggregate. GAO reviews usually aim to evaluate the economy, efficiency, and effectiveness of the Federal tax system. When a review indicates an IRS activity or a tax law can be improved, recommendations are offered on ways to make the improvement. Findings on whether the aims are achieved, along with related recommendations, are usually captured in GAO reports. Reports range from those that lay out detailed analyses and recommendations in evaluating one or more issues to those that summarize facts in answering specific questions. Recommendations focus on changes in the future to avoid affecting ongoing tax cases. Further, some work culminates in briefings to congressional staff or members, or in testimony to congressional committees. Recent reports Appendix I (following page) provides a listing of some recent GAO tax reports. Congressional offices should call GAO's Office of Congressional Relations at (202) 275-5388 to order copies of GAO reports. How to contact GAO To discuss work that GAO could do or to obtain briefings on completed work, call any of the key officials listed in Appendix II (following page). APPENDIX I CHRONOLOGICAL LISTING OF GAO PRODUCTS ON TAX MATTERS ISSUED IN FISCAL YEAR 1990 Testimony on Allocation of Taxes Within the Life Insurance Industry, (GAO/TGGD-90-3) 10/19/89. Report on Allocation of Taxes Within the Life Insurance Industry (GAO/GGD-9019) 10/19/89 Private Pensions: Impact of Vesting and Minimum Benefit and Contribution Rules in Top-Heavy Plans (GAO/HRD-90-4BR) 10/23/89 Social Security: Alternative Wage-Reporting Processes (GAO/HRD-90-35) 11/08/89 Puerto Rico: Background Information on Applicable Federal Legislation, Its Governmental Structure, and Its Finances (GAO/T-HRD-90-7) 11/15/89 Pension Plan Terminations: Recapturing Tax Benefits Contained in Asset Reversions (GAO/HRD-90-51BR) 11/22/89 Department of Justice's Responses to Requests for Court Tax Decisions (GAO/GGD90-29FS) 12/13/89 Treasury's Efforts to Improve Its Payroll and Personnel Systems (GAO/IMTEC-904) 12/15/89 Tax-Exempt Bond Issuance Costs (GAO/GGD-90-9BR) 12/18/89 Need for More Management Attention to IRS' College Recruitment Program (GAO/ GGD-90-32) 12/22/89 Private Pensions: Spousal Consent Forms Hard to Read and Lack Important Information (GAO/HRD-90-20) 12/27/89 Monitoring the Accuracy and Administration of IRS' 1989 Test Call Survey (GAO/ GGD-90-36) 01/04/90 Monitoring the Accuracy and Administration of IRS' 1989 Test Call Survey (GAO/ GGD-90-37) 01/04/90 IRS Needs to Improve Distribution of Tax Materials to the Public (GAO/GGD-9034) 01/10/90 IRS Automation: Procurement Practices Need Strengthening (GAO/IMTEC-90-24) 01/12/90 Government Financial Vulnerability: 14 Areas Needing Special Review (GAO/OCG90-1) 01/23/90 Tax Treatment of Life Insurance and Annuity Accrued Interest (GAO/GGD-90–31) 01/29/90 Perspectives on Potential Agricultural and Budgetary Impacts From an Increased Use of Ethanol Fuels (GAO/T-RCED-90-23) 02/01/90 Meeting the Government's Technology Challenge: Results of a GAO Symposium (GÃO/IMTEC-90-23) 02/90 The Question of Rolling Back the Payroll Tax: Unmasking the Deficit Illusion (GAO/T-HRD-90-10) 02/05/90 Tax System Modernization: IRS' Challenge for the 21st Century (GAO/IMTEC-9013) 02/08/90 IRS' Accounts Receivable Inventory (GAO/T-GGD-90-19) 02/20/90 Use of Housing Subsidies (GAO/T-RCED-90-34) 02/27/90 Puerto Rico: Background Information on Applicable Federal Legislation, Its Governmental Structure, and Its Finances (GAO/HRD-90-70BR) 03/07/90 IRS Senior Executives' Views on the Impact of the 1987 Reorganization (GAO/ GGD-90-45) 03/08/90 Information on Timber Harvesting, Planting, Federal Assistance Programs, and Tax Provisions (GAO/T-RCED-90-45) 03/08/90 Social Security: Taxing Nonqualified Deferred Compensation (GAO/HRD-90-82) 03/15/90 1989 Annual Report on GAO's Tax-Related Work (GAO/GGD-90-46) 03/16/90 State Tax Officials Have Concerns About a Federal Consumption Tax (GAO/GGD90-50) 03/21/90 Progress in Meeting the Challenge of Modernizing IRS' Tax Processing System (GAO/T-IMTEC-90-5) 03/22/90 IRS' Budget Request for Fiscal Year 1991 and Status of the 1990 Tax Return Filing Season (GAO/T-GGD-90-26) 03/22/90 Tax System Modernization: IRS' Efforts to Improve Taxpayer Correspondence (GAO/IMTEC-90-26) 03/22/90 Uncertain Impact of Repealing the Deferral for Reinvested Shipping Income (GAO/ GGD-90-35) 03/26/90 Profiles of Major Components of the Tax Gap (GAO/GGD-90-53BR) 04/04/90 Social Security: Taxing Nonqualified Deferred Compensation (GAO/T-HRD-90-21) 04/05/90 Potential Audit Revenues Lost While Training New Revenue Agents (GAO/GGD90-77) 04/06/90 Taxation of Pension Income for Retired New Jersey Police and Firefighters (GAO/ GGD-90-73BR) 04/13/90 Testimony on Timber Harvesting, Planting, Federal Assistance Programs, and Tax Provisions (GAO/RCED-90-107BR) 04/13/90 Erroneous Penalties for Failure to File Returns or Pay Taxes Can Be Reduced (GAO/GGD-90-80) 04/13/90 Credit Management: Deteriorating Credit Picture Emphasizes Importance of OMB's Nine-Point Program (GAO/AFMD-90–12) 04/16/90 IRS Can Use Tax Gap Data to Improve Its Programs for Reducing Noncompliance (GAO/T-GGD-90-32) 04/19/90 Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Utilization and Syndication (GAO/T-RCED-90-73) 04/27/90 1987 Company Effective Tax Rates Higher Than in Prior Years (GAO/GGD-90-69) 05/10/90 Computer Security: Governmentwide Planning Process Had Limited Impact (GAO/ İMTEC-90-48) 05/10/90 Status of IRS' Test of a Business Information Returns Program (GAO/GGD-90-38) 05/29/90 Nonprofit Hospitals: Better Standards Needed for Tax Exemption (GAO/HRD-9084) 05/30/90 Information_Returns: Correcting Taxpayer Identification is Possible Without Disclosing Tax Data (GAO/GGD-90–90) 06/05/90 IRS Can Improve Its Process for Recognizing Tax-Exempt Organizations (GAO/ GGD-90-55) 06/08/90 Federal Government's Oversight of Pension and Welfare Funds (GAO/T-HRD-9037) 06/13/90 Treasury's Office of Inspector General Properly Established (GAO/AFMD-90-70) IRS Needs More Reliable Information on Enforcement Revenues (GAO/GGD-90-85) 06/20/90 Testimony on the Need for Better Tax Exemption Standards for Nonprofit Hospitals (GAO/HRD-90-45) 06/28/90 Data Needed on Whether to Regulate Filers of Information Returns for Others (GAO/GGD-90-95) 07/03/90 Management Mistakes Caused Delays in Automated Underreporter System (GAO/ IMTEC-90-51) 07/10/90 Pension Plan Terminations: Effectiveness of Excise Tax in Recovering Tax Benefits in Asset Reversions (GAO/HRD-90-126) 07/13/90 Alcohol Fuels: Impacts From Increased Use of Ethanol Blended Fuels (GAO/RCED90-156) 07/16/90 Additional Petroleum Production Tax Incentives Are of Questionable Merit (GAO/ GGD-90-75) 07/23/90 Pension Issues: Audits of Employee Benefit Plans Need to Be Strengthened (GAO/TAFMD-90-25) 07/24/90 Trends in Growth and Age of IRS' Accounts Receivable (GAO/GGD-90-111FS) 07/30/90 Effects of the Fiscal Year 1990 Sequestration on the Internal Revenue Service (GAO/GGD-90-101FS) 07/30/90 Federal Tax Deposit Requirements Should Be Simplified (GAO/GGD-90-102) 07/31/90 IRS' Accounts Receivable Inventory (GAO/GGD-90–60) 08/01/90 Observations on the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Program (GAO/RCED-90-203) 08/14/90 IRS Preparer Penalty Data Inaccurate and Misleading (GAO/GGD-90–92) 08/15/90 Private Pensions: Impact of New Vesting Rules Similar for Women and Men (GAO/ HRD-90-101) 08/21/90 IRS Needs to Assess Options to Make Faster Deposits of Large Tax Payments (GAO/GGD-90-120) 08/31/90 IRS Data Can Help SSA Credit More Wages (GAO/HRD-90-112) 08/31/90 IRS' Improved Estimates of Tax Examination Yield Need to Be Refined (GAO/ GGD-90-119) 09/05/90 Recruitment and Retention: Inadequate Federal Pay Cited as Primary Problem by Agency Officials (GAO/GGD-90-117) 09/11/90 The Budget Deficit: Outlook, Implications, and Choices (GAO/OCG-90-5) 09/12/90 Pension Benefits: Processing of Applications By the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (GAO/HRD-90-127) 09/25/90 Home Ownership: Limiting Mortgage Assistance Provided to Owners With HighIncome Growth (GAO/RCED-90-117) 09/26/90 Alcohol Excise Taxes: Simplifying Rates Can Enhance Economic and Administrative Efficiency (GAO/GGD-90-123) 09/27/90 Information Returns: Administration of Selected Filing Penalty Cases at Austin Service Center (GAO/GGD-90-99) 09/28/90 Associate Director, Tax Policy and Administration Issues David Attianese-Budget Issues, IRS Returns Processing John Lovelady-Taxpayer Service, Criminal Work Allan Stapleton-IRS Examinations, Document Matching INFORMATION MANAGEMENT Howard G. Rhile, Jr., Director, General Government Information Systems Room 6468 (202) 275-3455 ASSISTANT DIRECTORS Leonard Baptiste Tom Melloy Stephen Schwartz OFFICE OF CONGRESSIONAL RELATIONS Helen H. Hsing Legislative Adviser (202) 275-6301 OFFICE OF GENERAL COUNSEL Rachel DeMarcus Assistant General Counsel C. Congressional Budget Office The Congressional Budget Office (CBO), established in 1974 as an analytical support agency of the Congress, provides key information on the U.S. economy, the Federal budget, and Federal programs. Each year, CBO provides Congress with semiannual forecasts of the economy. It reviews and prepares an analysis of the President's budgetary proposals. It provides Congress with 5-year projections of the total Federal budget, against which changes in taxing and spending policies can be measured. CBO also scores congressional spending and revenue actions against budget resolution targets and submits to Congress advisory reports estimating whether the anticipated Federal budget deficit and discretionary spending amounts have been adhered to and whether the pay-as-you-go rules have been violated pursuant to the 1990 amendments to the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1987. The agency is required by law to estimate the 5-year cost of legislation reported by all authorizing committees of the Congress. In addition, CBO annually publishes a broad range of studies of programmatic issues affecting the Federal budget and is called upon regularly by all congressional committees to provide expert testimony on fiscal and budgetary matters. CBO is a nonpartisan agency. It does not make policy recommendations, but assesses available policy alternatives and options and reports the estimated consequences of adopting such courses of action. The Budget Act establishes the following priority of committees for CBO services: first, the House and Senate Budget Committees; second, the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, the House Ways and Means Committee, and the Senate Finance Committee; finally, all other congressional committees. Committee requests take the form of a letter from the chairman or ranking minority member of a full committee of jurisdiction, or the chairman of a subcommittee of jurisdiction or a Budget Committee task force. CBO also responds to requests from the leadership of either party in both Houses of Congress. CBO's published reports are distributed to all Members of Congress. To request a publications list or specific publication, telephone CBO at (202) 226-2809, or write to: Office of Intergovernmental Relations House Office Building Annex #2 Washington, D.C. 20515 |