Maybe not surprisingly, an overwhelmingly majority of taxpayers recently surveyed agreed that it is “not at all” acceptable to cheat on income taxes.The Internal Revenue Service Oversight Board cited said that 86 percent of respondents to its 2006 Taxpayer Attitude Survey, in concluding that there was strong continued taxpayer support for compliance. The percentage was down slightly from last year’s figure, but still within the margin of error.
Among the survey’s other findings:
- Nearly 75 percent of respondents agreed that it is everyone’s civic duty to pay their fair share of taxes;
- Nearly 80 percent said that they were satisfied with their personal interaction with the IRS; and,
- Nearly 85 percent believe that the more information and guidance the IRS provides, the more likely they are to file a correct return.
E-filing was seen as the most important service offered by the agency (cited by 93 percent), and followed closely by access to the IRS toll-free telephone lines to answer questions (91 percent). Strong support was also registered for walk-in service, the IRS Web site and community based-tax clinics.The survey also found that more than 60 percent of taxpayers believe that the IRS should receive additional funding to enhance its customer service over the phone and in person (66 percent), and strengthen its enforcement programs (63 percent).
The complete survey is available at the board’s Web site,
