The IRS is considering allowing tax preparers to sell your tax return information to private companies. And you'll have no control over how that company will use your data, who else they'll give it to, or whether or not they'll safeguard it from identity thieves.
Ask the IRS to abandon this proposal, and keep taxpayers' returns private. Then, ask your friends and family to help by forwarding this e-mail to them.
To take action, click on the following link or paste it into your browser:
http://calpirg.org/CA.asp?id=1362&id4=ESBackground:
Your tax returns contain extremely sensitive, personal financial information most Americans wouldn't want the world to see, such as your income, how much you claim in medical expenses, how much you spend on child care and, of course, your contact information. Up until now, you could trust that your tax returns would remain private, and only you, your accountant, and the IRS had access to them.
But now the IRS has proposed shocking new rules that would allow your tax preparer to share or sell the contents of your tax returns with a third party, as long as you sign a form giving them permission.
That's great news for companies like Choicepoint that make millions of dollars selling your personal information to marketers that want to barrage you with advertising. And it's a pot of gold for identity thieves, who would love to get a hold of your tax return to make it easier for them to commit fraud. In fact, just since January 2005, identity thieves have successfully broken into databases at Choicepoint and dozens of other companies over the last two years and stolen sensitive personal information on hundreds of millions of Americans. Over 9 million Americans are victims of identity theft each year, according to the Federal Trade Commission.
Here's how it would work if the proposal is adopted: when you visit your accountant or a tax preparation firm like H&R Block, your tax preparer would ask you to sign a form authorizing them to release your information to a specific corporation like Choicepoint, Mastercard or any other company. Once you sign that form, your tax preparer has permission to sell the information contained in your tax filings to the company. And you have no control over how that company will use your data, who else they'll give it to, or whether or not they'll safeguard it from identity thieves.
Under the proposal, consumers have the right to refuse to sign the form and stop their information from being shared. But that's not good enough. A consumer needs to trust the person she's hired to prepare and file her taxes, the very person who tells her to "sign here, sign there" on a seemingly endless number of forms. Slipping a document in that shuffle of paperwork violates the trust between the consumer and her paid tax preparer.
Many consumers may not realize they're giving away the rights to such highly sensitive information, or may feel pressured to sign the form in front of their tax preparer. And there's nothing in the IRS rules to prohibit tax preparers from offering special incentives in exchange for giving up your privacy.
On March 8, 2006 CALPIRG joined other state PIRGs, along with the National Consumer Law Center and the Consumer Federation of America to file formal comments with the IRS in opposition to this rule. The coalition of consumer groups also criticized other elements of the proposal that would allow tax preparers to more easily market their own services such as Refund Anticipation Loans which contain outrageous fees.
For more information about the proposed rules, you can click on the link to the San Francisco Chronicle story below or paste it into your browser:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/03/09/BUGEAHKOC034.DTLAsk the IRS to abandon this proposal, and keep taxpayers' returns private. Then, ask your friends and family to help by forwarding this e-mail to them.
To take action, click on the following link or paste it into your browser:
http://calpirg.org/CA.asp?id=1362&id4=ESSincerely,
Steve Blackledge
CALPIRG Legislative Director
SteveB@calpirg.org
http://www.CALPIRG.orgP.S. Thanks again for your support. Please feel free to share this e-mail with your family and friends.
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