DOJ

On April 11, 2019, the IRS announced the results of a national two-week education and enforcement campaign to combat employment tax crimes.  Payroll taxes account for approximately 70% of all revenue collected by the U.S. Treasury.  Given the significance of payroll tax collections to the federal government, IRS revenue officers across the country visited   nearly 100 businesses during the two-week period to discuss suspected employment tax noncompliance by the businesses.  These revenue officers informed the businesses about how to catch-up on previously owed payroll taxes, how to stay current in collecting and remitting payroll taxes, and the potential civil and criminal penalties that businesses and individuals face with respect to noncompliance.
Continue Reading IRS Announces Results of Employment Tax Campaign

The Justice Department has again demonstrated its willingness to prosecute corporate executives for failing to remit employment taxes.  On March 22, 2019, the Department of Justice issued a press release to announce that the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina sentenced a North Carolina man to 30 months in prison, restitution of $1.686 million, and three years of supervised released following completion of his sentence.  The executive served in various official capacities for OneCare, Inc., a mental health service provider, including as the corporation’s President.  From 2010 to 2013, OneCare withheld, but failed to pay over, employment taxes in the amount of almost $1.7 million.  On May 2, 2018, the executive was charged with, among other charges, one count of Willful Failure to Collect or Pay Over Tax.  He ultimately entered into a plea agreement that required him to plead guilty to a single count of Willful Failure to Collect or Pay Over Tax.
Continue Reading Justice Department Continues Aggressive Enforcement for Trust Fund Tax Failures