IRS Officials Claim Cuts Will Widen Tax Gap by $500 Billion

What happens when tax enforcement weakens? With 17% of millennials considering skipping their tax filing altogether, Blake and David dig into how IRS budget cuts might impact compliance and revenue. They analyze fascinating survey data revealing what taxpayers truly value when choosing between professional preparation and free options like Direct File. Plus, discover the accounting scandal forcing Financial Times to retract its Tesla analysis, exposing how GAAP complexity confounds even financial experts. You'll also learn why three major US cities face billion-dollar budget holes and the disturbing revelation that duplicate Medicaid payments are costing taxpayers billions—all while Tether still can't produce an audit after ten years of promises. Sponsors Bluevine - http://accountingpodcast.promo/bluevine (Bluevine is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking Services provided by Coastal Community Bank, Member FDIC.) TeamUp - http://accountingpodcast.promo/teamup RightWorks- http://accountingpodcast.promo/rightnow2025 Chapters (00:00) - Introduction and Podcast Overview (00:42) - Top Stories of the Week (02:27) - Sponsor Messages and Event Announcements (04:52) - Interview with Christina Ho on PCAOB (07:57) - Discussion on IRS Cuts and Tax Compliance (19:44) - Survey on IRS Direct File (28:21) - AI's Impact on Tax Professionals (29:14) - Discrepancies in Tax Software Results (30:08) - Public Opinion on Tax Filing Services (31:23) - Challenges for Tax Professionals (33:56) - LA's Budget Crisis (37:41) - Federal Government Spending Issues (38:45) - Medicaid Duplicate Payments Scandal (47:12) - Tether's Audit Controversy (51:55) - Tesla's Financial Discrepancies (57:33) - Big Four Transparency Rankings (59:24) - Conclusion and Farewell   Show Notes Tax Revenue Could Drop by 10 Percent Amid Turmoil at IRS https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/03/22/irs-tax-revenue-loss-federal-budget/   Survey: Some Americans Might Roll the Dice on Not Filing Their Taxes This Year Due to IRS Job Cuts https://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/2025/03/26/survey-some-americans-might-roll-the-dice-on-not-filing-their-taxes-this-year-due-to-irs-job-cuts/157877/   Most Americans Are Interested in Using IRS Direct File to Prepare and File Their Taxes https://taxpolicycenter.org/briefs/most-americans-are-interested-using-irs-direct-file-prepare-and-file-their-taxes   TurboTax vs Free Tax USA: A Shocking Price Comparison  https://www.tiktok.com/@carolinesadventure/video/7482613418801859870   Survey: 91% of Americans Think Filing Taxes Should Be Free https://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/2025/03/11/survey-91-of-americans-think-filing-taxes-should-be-free/157176/   Why you should think twice before claiming an income-tax extension. ‘This is not the year to do your normal procrastinating.’ https://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-you-should-think-twice-before-claiming-an-income-tax-extension-this-is-not-the-year-to-do-your-normal-procrastinating-89937e0d   LA Faces $1 Billion Budget Hole, Warns of Thousands of Layoffs https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-03-20/la-faces-1-billion-budget-hole-warning-thousands-of-layoffs   WSJ investigation: Medicaid paid health insurers billions by covering the same patients twice https://www.risehealth.org/insights-articles/wsj-investigation-medicaid-paid-health-insurers-billions-by-covering-the-same-patients-twice/   Tether seeks Big Four firm for its first full financial audit — Report https://cointelegraph.com/news/stablecoin-issuer-tether-big-four-firm-full-reserve-audit-report   Financial Times retracts report on Tesla’s alleged shady accounting https://www.teslarati.com/financial-times-retracts-report-tesla-shady-accounting/   The Big 4 Transparency Accounting Awards https://big4transparency.beehiiv.com/p/the-big-4-transparency-accounting-awards   Need CPE? Get CPE for listening to podcasts with Earmark: https://earmarkcpe.com Subscribe to the Earmark Podcast: https://podcast.earmarkcpe.com Get in Touch Thanks for listening and the great reviews! We appreciate you! Follow and tweet @BlakeTOliver and @DavidLeary. Find us on Facebook and Instagram. If you like what you hear, please do us a favor and write a review on Apple Podcasts or Podchaser. Call us and leave a voicemail; maybe we'll play it on the show. DIAL (202) 695-1040. Sponsorships Are you interested in sponsoring the Cloud Accounting Podcast? For details, read the prospectus. Need Accounting Conference Info?  Check out our new website - accountingconferences.com Limited edition shirts, stickers, and other necessities TeePublic Store: http://cloudacctpod.link/merch SubscribeApple Podcasts: http://cloudacctpod.link/ApplePodcastsYouTube: https://www.y...