Saturday, September 25, 2004

Joseph Thorndike has published Historical Perspective: The Unhappy History of Private Tax Collection on the Tax Analysts’ Tax History Project web site. Here is the opening:

If Congress gets its way, the IRS may soon be hiring private tax collectors to pursue public debts. Pending legislation to repeal the extraterritorial income exclusion would also encourage the IRS to farm out some collection chores. Key House and Senate lawmakers have embraced the idea, and Bush administration leaders have signed on too. But before embarking on this brave new experiment in revenue outsourcing, Congress should consider an unhappy precedent.