Assessment of 100-Percent Penalties against Responsible Corporate Officials for Willful Nonpayment of Taxes Withheld from Employees' Wages and Certain Excise Taxes

A survey was conducted of the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) policies, procedures, and practices in assessing 100-percent penalties against responsible officials of corporations for willful nonpayment of taxes witheld from employees' wages and certain excise taxes. Sixty-one recommended penalty assessments involving 33 corporate cases handled by the Chicago District Office were reviewed, as well as 69 delinquent cases where the penalty was not used and 29 decisions rendered by federal district courts which dealt with 100-percent penalties.