 |
|
||||||
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Wanda Seeney (573) 751-7500
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 17, 2008
Department of Labor and the IRS Partner to Improve Compliance
with Employment Tax Laws
JEFFERSON CITY, MO – The Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations (DOLIR) has joined more than two dozen state workforce agencies that have signed partnership agreements with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The goal is to help the IRS and the states reduce fraudulent filings, uncover employment tax avoidance schemes, and ensure proper worker classification. So far, 32 states have entered into individual information-sharing agreements with the IRS. Missouri signed its Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) last month.
The agreements, part of the Questionable Employment Tax Practice (QETP) initiative, provide a centralized, uniform means for the IRS and state employment officials to exchange data, thereby leveraging resources and encouraging businesses to comply with federal and state employment tax requirements. QETPs are employment tax schemes that serve no purpose other than to avoid federal and/or state employment taxes.
Members of the QETP agreement are the Missouri Department of Labor’s Division of Employment Security, the IRS, the U.S. Department of Labor, the National Association of State Workforce Agencies (NASWA), and the Federation of Tax Administrators.
“This agreement is a direct response to my call for increased sharing of resources and better efficiency at the state level, said Gov. Blunt. “The sharing of resources will help our state reduce fraudulent filings and make significant improvements in state services, demonstrating our continued commitment to attacking noncompliance and fraud.”
“The exchange of audit reports, and the participation of side-by-side examinations, when appropriate, will allow the participating agencies to improve their oversight mechanisms that will result in cooperation and compliance with employment tax rules and regulations,” said Todd Smith, DOLIR Director. “If we’re auditing and need additional information on an employer, the IRS is now able to share supplementary information with us, and we’re able to reciprocate the sharing of information with the IRS. The exchange also could help the state determine whether employers are misclassifying workers, such as identifying employees as independent contractors for whom the employers do not have to pay the unemployment tax.”
The agreement also will help decrease state and federal tax gaps and ensure that businesses are operating on a level playing field by making certain that everyone pays their proper share of employment taxes.
In addition to coordinating compliance activities, the agreement calls for collaborative outreach and education activities designed to help businesses understand their employment and unemployment tax responsibilities.
The multiple state exchange agreements are the first result of the QETP initiative. The various QETP teams formed within each state will use the results of the project to find new opportunities for collaboration and to work toward improved employment tax compliance.
For more information about the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, please visit the Internet site, http://www.dolir.mo.gov/index.asp.
###
Information and Planning · 421 East Dunklin
· P.O. Box 504 · Jefferson City, MO
65102-0504
573-751-7500 · 573-751-6552 (Fax)
Relay Missouri: 1-800-735-2966 (TDD) 1-800-735-2466 (Voice)