IRS Audits Fewer Millionaires

More millionaires filed tax returns for 2008, but a smaller percentage of them were audited by the IRS.

This is the finding released today by Syracuse University’s Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse.

The nut of the story, as reported by the Associated Press:

Those with incomes of $1 million and above had a 5.6 percent chance of getting audited in fiscal year 2008, which ended last September, down from 6.8 percent the previous year, according to IRS figures. The actual number of millionaires audited fell from 23,200 to 21,874; the number of millionaires filing tax returns grew from 339,138 to 392,776.

According to the article, IRS officials say the agency shifted focus last year from conducting audits to sending out economic stimulus checks.

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