I don’t know about the rest of you but it irks me to no end that some Americans don’t pay their fair share of taxes. For years, some of the richest among us have moved their money overseas to avoid paying taxes on it. That means our country has to either raise taxes on the rest of us or get deeper in debt.
Finally we have an administration that is doing something about that situation. By Nov. 17, more than 7,500 U.S. taxpayers had come forward to disclose billions in offshore bank accounts in 70 countries under a voluntary Internal Revenue Service program allowing most to avoid criminal prosecution as long as they pay what they owe.
Thousands of people came forward in the last days before the amnesty program expired Oct 15. The final total of about 7,500 far surpasses the 100 who usually come forward in a typical year. The IRS credits their success to the agreement the Obama administration made with the Swiss government and their UBS bank.
According to the IRS, the total in taxes, interest and penalties collected from those in the voluntary disclosure program will be in the billions of dollars.
Taxpayers flocked to the amnesty program after the U.S. reached an agreement in August with the Swiss government and UBS to obtain names of 4,450 U.S. taxpayers believed to be hiding assets of at least 1 million Swiss Francs in secret bank accounts. Earlier this year, UBS paid a $780 million penalty under a deferred prosecution agreement filed in a Florida federal court that included disclosure of an additional 150 names. Seven of those people have been charged criminally, with at least two getting sentenced to prison time.
The voluntary disclosures were for bank accounts all over the world. The action taken against the Swiss bank and government convinced people that this administration is serious about stopping tax evasion.
I for one am seriously delighted that the Obama administration is making sure everyone pays their fair share in taxes. I wonder why they were allowed to get away without doing that for so long.
Jo Davis
Shawnee
