IRS

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is an agency of the Department of the United States Treasury, under the direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue, the IRS is responsible for imposing the tax laws imparted by Congress. Headquartered in Washington, DC the IRS's primary duty is the collection and enforcement of income tax.http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/internal+revenue+service?fromAsk=true&o=100074

The IRS publishes an extensive number of forms which taxpayers are responsible for using in reporting their tax responsibilities from the previous year. The agency collects these forms annually, and reviews them for accuracy. Levies and other charges may be applied for late filing or discrepancies on forms.http://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc201.html In the event of serious discrepancy or other form inaccuracies, the IRS may conduct an audit on the taxpayer.http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/faqEditorial-29069.html

If a taxpayer owes money on their income tax, they are responsible for paying the balance in full. If the balance is not paid at the time the tax return is filed, the IRS will issue a bill.http://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc201.html This bill initiates the IRS's collection process, which will continue until the bill has been satisfied or the collection period has expired.http://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc201.html

• 1862: President Abraham Lincoln created the office of Commissioner of Internal Revenuehttp://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/1986/winter/civil-war-tax-records.html

• 1862: Lincoln enacts income tax to fund the Civil Warhttp://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/1986/winter/civil-war-tax-records.html

• 1862: Revenue Act of 1862 passedhttp://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/1986/winter/civil-war-tax-records.html

• 1894: Supreme Court declared Income Tax of 1894 unconstitutionalhttp://eh.net/bookreviews/library/0851

• 1913: 16th Amendment to the US Constitution ratified.

• 1913: First IRS 1040 form draftedhttp://www.americanheritage.com/articles/magazine/ah/1989/2/1989_2_101.shtml

• 1950's: Developing technology allowed for better organized and accessible records

• 1990's: IRS began to allow for electronic filing via the Internethttp://www.nysscpa.org/cpajournal/2005/1005/essentials/p66.htm

• 2003: IRS agreed to filing software deals, allowing taxpayers to e-file their tax returns free of charge.http://www.irs.gov/efile/index.html

• 2008: Nearly 90 million returns were e-filedhttp://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=202537,00.html

• 2009: E-files increased by 20% from the previous year

The four primary IRS divisions include:

• Wage and Investment
• Large and Mid-Size Business
• Small Business/Self-Employed
• Tax-Exempt and Government Entitieshttp://www.irs.gov/irs/article/0,,id=149199,00.html