Tax Policy:
Additional Information on the Research Tax Credit
T-GGD-95-161: Published: May 10, 1995. Publicly Released: May 10, 1995.
Additional Materials:
- Full Report:
Contact:
GAO discussed the future of the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) research tax credit. GAO noted that: (1) the research tax credit is mainly earned by large corporations in the manufacturing sector; (2) the credit's net benefit to society should be evaluated in terms of the benefits derived from the additional research it stimulates rather than simply on how much research spending it stimulates; (3) it is uncertain whether the credit should be made a permanent part of the tax code, since its net benefit to society is unclear; (4) the revisions made to the credit in 1989 should have increased the amount of research spending stimulated; (5) the fixed credit base has resulted in disbursement disparities; (6) IRS has had difficulty administering the credit, since the definition of qualified research spending is unclear; and (7) Treasury issued final regulations in 1994 designed to clarify which types of research qualify for the credit.
Oct 19, 2020
Tax Administration:
Opportunities Exist to Improve Oversight of Hospitals' Tax-Exempt StatusGAO-20-679: Published: Sep 17, 2020. Publicly Released: Oct 19, 2020.
Sep 23, 2020
-
Taxpayer Service:
IRS Could Improve the Taxpayer Experience by Using Better Service Performance MeasuresGAO-20-656: Published: Sep 23, 2020. Publicly Released: Sep 23, 2020.
Aug 31, 2020
-
Abusive Tax Schemes:
Offshore Insurance Products and Associated Compliance RisksGAO-20-589: Published: Jul 30, 2020. Publicly Released: Aug 31, 2020.
Jun 29, 2020
-
Taxpayer Compliance:
More Income Reporting Needed for Taxpayers Working through Online PlatformsGAO-20-366: Published: May 28, 2020. Publicly Released: Jun 29, 2020.
Jun 16, 2020
-
Tax Exempt Organizations:
IRS Increasingly Uses Data in Examination Selection, but Could Further Improve Selection ProcessesGAO-20-454: Published: Jun 16, 2020. Publicly Released: Jun 16, 2020.
May 1, 2020
-
Management Report:
Improvements Are Needed to Enhance the Internal Revenue Service's Internal Control over Financial ReportingGAO-20-480R: Published: May 1, 2020. Publicly Released: May 1, 2020.
Apr 30, 2020
-
Priority Open Recommendations:
Internal Revenue ServiceGAO-20-548PR: Published: Apr 23, 2020. Publicly Released: Apr 30, 2020.
Apr 1, 2020
-
Payment Integrity:
Selected Agencies Should Improve Efforts to Evaluate Effectiveness of Corrective Actions to Reduce Improper PaymentsGAO-20-336: Published: Apr 1, 2020. Publicly Released: Apr 1, 2020.
Mar 2, 2020
-
Identity Theft:
IRS Needs to Better Assess the Risks of Refund Fraud on Business-Related ReturnsGAO-20-174: Published: Jan 30, 2020. Publicly Released: Mar 2, 2020.
Feb 26, 2020
-
Individual Retirement Accounts:
IRS Could Better Inform Taxpayers about and Detect Noncompliance Related to Unconventional AssetsGAO-20-210: Published: Jan 27, 2020. Publicly Released: Feb 26, 2020.
Looking for more? Browse all our products here
Explore our Key Issues on Tax Policy and Administration
Explore our other Key Issues here
