Current and former IRS officials sometimes grumble about the work of the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, arguing that their reports and findings are overly harsh and often fail to take into account the tax agency’s historic funding and personnel limitations.
However, an audit released this week gives the agency high marks for its efforts cracking down on tax refund fraud and identity theft, utilizing a layered approach that combines new software, public-private partnerships and innovative pilot programs to save billions of dollars from ending up in the hands of criminals and fraudsters.