The Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) resides within the Department of the Treasury, and administers and enforces U.S. federal tax laws. By collecting more than $3 trillion in taxes and enforcing tax law, the IRS administers primary sources of income for the United States government. The IRS also maintains an investigative and law enforcement division that identifies and prosecutes people who violate the tax code.
BUDGET: Just under $12 billion.
The Internal Revenue Service Agent at a Glance
POWERS OF ARREST? Yes for Agents of the Criminal Investigation (CI) division. However, most IRS employees are bureaucrats with no special law enforcement powers.
EXPECTED TO CARRY A WEAPON? Yes for CI Agents.
ACCESS TO OFFICIAL FUNDS? Can be supplied with a credit line if traveling or on an investigation or mission, up to a Standard expense without eliciting official review
OPERATIONAL BUDGET/RESTRICTED ITEMS? Using Bureaucracy, an Agent may access the financial, personal financial and taxation data on most Americans and residents in the United States, as well as persons and entities abroad responsible for paying U.S. taxes. In most cases, this does not elicit official review unless it pertains to a known personality such as a politician or celebrity.
Criminal Investigation Division Agents may use Bureaucracy to acquire specialized electronic diagnostic tools, decryption/encryption software, and computer programs (“safecrackers”).
The Organization
The IRS is headquartered in Washington, D.C. Most of its functions are computer-based digital services which are handled in a special annex in Maryland.
The IRS functions under four major operating divisions: the Large Business & International (LB&I) division, Small Business/Self-Employed (SB/SE), Wage and Investment (W&I), Tax Exempt & Government Entities (TE/GE), and Criminal Investigation (CI).
Under the Office of the Commissioner are specialized sub-offices that don’t fit elsewhere, including the Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR). OPR oversees the identification and investigation of illegal activities by certified tax professionals.
The Criminal Investigation Division is made up of three interdependent programs: Legal Source Tax Crimes; Illegal Source Financial Crimes; and Narcotics Related and Counterterrorism Financial Crimes. Along with traditional federal agents, CI employs specially-trained and educated tax lawyers and prosecutors to bring their cases before a grand jury. The conviction rate for CI is quite high.
Key IRS Divisions
» Large Business & International Division
» Small Business/Self-Employed Division
» Wage & Investment Division
» Tax Exempt & Government Entities
» Criminal Investigation Division
» Office of the Commissioner
Office of Professional Responsibility
Operatives
Most of the IRS’s employees are support staff, bureaucrats, financial analysts, program managers, accountants, and computer specialists. They support the large bureaucracy of the IRS so that it can efficiently collect taxes.
Experienced in both financial investigators and traditional law enforcement, CI special agents fill a unique niche in the federal law enforcement community. Unravelling sophisticated schemes to defraud the government requires CI agents to have the patience and analytical ability to wade through paper and computerized financial records. Due to the increased use of automation for financial records, CI special agents use specialized forensic technology to recover financial data that may have been encrypted, erased, or hidden by other electronic means.
Authority and Mandate
The rules and regulations that govern tax law and the performance of the IRS are outlined in the Internal Revenue Code. The organization monitors and investigates financial transactions that occur within the United States and its territories. This gives the IRS a broad mandate, since a large number of the world’s financial transactions use American banks at some point, and virtually all international fund transfers utilize resources in the United States. The IRS can request a considerable amount of information and records from those under scrutiny. Entities (business or individual) that do not provide the required documentation face fines or jail time.
The Criminal Investigation Division combats tax fraud, money laundering, and currency crime violations. Even the smallest one-man criminal enterprise will have a number of tax code violations, ensuring CI has a reason to be interested in every crime.
Many other law enforcement agencies appreciate CI aid. CI’s support on an investigation builds a more robust case with more substantive punishments.
Field Operations
Official travel is rare and well-scrutinized. Some accounting-focused personnel travel occasionally for conferences, public education events, and to participate in off-site programs. The exception to this is the Criminal Investigation Division. CI Agents are expected to follow-up on their office work with regular on-site field investigations and travel often.
Areas of Friction
Americans widely dislike the IRS. Most see it as a necessary evil. Some see it as an active evil, literally stealing their money. The IRS is a frequent scapegoat for politicians of all stripes. The IRS is often the agency-of-choice for funding cuts, as cost savings there are unlikely to elicit any sort of backlash from the public. That makes investigation of complex, high-value financial crimes less likely than quicker investigations of smaller crimes.
Playing the IRS
Morale in the IRS is generally good, despite its public reputation and dwindling resources. The IRS has a clear mission, well-defined roles, and (outside of tax season) a reasonable work day. If you aren’t particularly ambitious, the IRS is a good spot.
Working at the IRS fosters risk-averse decisionmaking in its employees, partly because the organization offers a good benefits package, good wages, and secure positions, but also because the work focuses on efficiency and bottom lines. There is rarely a push for innovation. Come in. Do your job. Go home. Get paid. Repeat.
IRS criminal investigators are a special breed. As a CI agent, you are likely smart, patient, and detail-oriented. You are comfortable with the arcane rules of obscure tax regulations. You have a meaningful understanding of accounting, digital forensics, and navigating bureaucracy in a way that most other law enforcement officers cannot fathom. When you spring into action, your focus is on computers. When serving a warrant (often with U.S. Marshal support) you blow right past the suspect to secure their computer before they can encrypt or erase data. Better yet, you likely have mined the computer for the data you need remotely and in advance.
Unlike many other law enforcement agents, you tend to think in terms of systems, schema, and processes, and less about the individuals involved or their backgrounds. Your cases are built on forensic accounting: parsing and dissecting complex schemes involving data manipulation and financial transfers.
The IRS CI Badge strikes fear into everyone. While the FBI and Marshals engender a sense of awe, civilians tend to react to the IRS with fear and confusion. Most Americans don’t know the IRS has its own law enforcement arm. When they realize who they are talking to, there is inevitably moment of panic, even in otherwise upstanding individuals. Other law enforcement agencies give the IRS CI respect and latitude, in part because the CI has the highest conviction rate of any federal law enforcement body.
Suggested Professions
Criminal Investigation Division (CI)
While other federal agencies share jurisdiction for money laundering and some bank violations, the IRS is the only federal agency that can investigate potential criminal violations of tax law. CI work is largely electronic and computer-based.
PROFESSION: Federal Agent.
SUGGESTED BONUS SKILLS: Accounting, Computer
Science, Science (Mathematics), SIGINT.
EQUIPMENT: Per TOOLS OF THE TRADE: FEDERAL AGENT on page 85 of the Agent’s Handbook, plus access to a law library and wide leeway to access any tax documents within the U.S
Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR)
OPR ensures that all tax practitioners adhere to professional standards and follow the law. When someone is found violating tax law, OPR professionals help the investigation.
PROFESSION: Lawyer.
SUGGESTED BONUS SKILLS: Accounting, Computer
Science, Forensics, Law.
EQUIPMENT: A sizable physical and electronic library on tax law, criminal law, and forensic accounting. The Agent also has access to historical corporate and personal tax returns.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:13, Mon 22 Apr 2019.
