Issues Links
IRS Announces Sweeping Effort to Restore Fairness to Tax System With Inflation Reduction Act Funding
"The effort, building off work following last August's IRA funding, will center on adding more attention on wealthy, partnerships and other high earners that have seen sharp drops in audit rates for these taxpayer segments during the past decade. The changes will be driven with the help of improved technology as well as Artificial Intelligence that will help IRS compliance teams better detect tax cheating, identify emerging compliance threats and improve case selection tools to avoid burdening taxpayers with needless "no-change" audits." more »
Congressional Budget Office: Federal Budget Deficit Totals $1.4 Trillion in 2023; Annual Deficits Average $2.0 Trillion Over the 2024–2033 Period
"The cumulative deficit over the 2023–2032 period that we now project is $3 trillion larger than we projected last May, mainly because of newly enacted legislation and changes to the economic forecast that boost interest costs and spending on mandatory programs. Federal debt held by the public is projected to rise from 98 percent of GDP in 2023 to 118 percent in 2033 — an average increase of 2 percentage points per year. Over that period, the growth of interest costs and mandatory spending outpaces the growth of revenues and the economy, driving up debt. Those factors persist beyond 2033, pushing federal debt higher still, to 195 percent of GDP in 2053. The increase in mandatory spending is driven by rising costs for Social Security and Medicare. Total discretionary spending falls in relation to GDP. As the cost of financing the nation’s debt grows, net outlays for interest increase substantially." more »
National Institutes of Health: Half of Adults Treated at Hospitals for COVID-19 Experienced Lingering Symptoms, Financial Difficulties, Physical Limitations Months After Discharge
"Many adults experience problems like coughing, chest pain, and fatigue six months after their stay.
About half of adults treated at hospitals for COVID-19 have experienced lingering symptoms, financial difficulties, or physical limitations months after being discharged, according to a National Institutes of Health-supported study published in JAMA Network Open. After six months, more than 7 in 10 adults surveyed in the study experienced cardiopulmonary problems, such as coughing, rapid or irregular heartbeat, and breathlessness, while about half had fatigue or physical limitations – all symptoms associated with long COVID(link is external). Additionally, more than half of the adults said they faced financial challenges." more »
GAO (U.S. Government Accountability Office): Passengers with Disabilities; Barriers to Accessible Air Travel Remain
Based on GAO's review of regulations and information obtained from officials with the Department of Transportation (DOT) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), GAO found that DOT has taken steps to implement the relevant accessibility-related provisions of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018. For example, DOT now requires the largest U.S. airlines to report the number of wheelchairs and scooters that were transported and damaged. DOT is addressing several other provisions in the initial rulemaking processes. DOT has also taken steps to address other longstanding accessibility issues not required under the 2018 Act, but important to passengers with disabilities. In March 2022, DOT issued a proposed rule to address accessible lavatories that would apply to aircraft deliveries, to begin in 20 years. Regarding disability-related enforcement actions, DOT has taken one since 2019. more »