The IRS has recovered $1.3 billion in unpaid taxes from high-income Americans since late 2023, according to the Treasury Department. The IRS targeted approximately 1,600 individuals who made over $1 million the previous year, and nearly 80% made payments on overdue tax debts.
In 2019, Yellen said the top 1% of wealthy Americans owed more than one-fifth of all unpaid taxes, shifting the tax burden to ordinary citizens.
Yellen emphasized that to fix the problem, the Treasury had redirected IRS funding to combat tax evasion among the wealthy.
The initiative focuses on taxpayers with over $1 million in income and more than $250,000 in recognized tax debt.
A separate initiative targeting wealthy non-filers collected an additional $172 million from 21,000 high-income taxpayers who had not filed returns since 2017.
As the presidential election approaches, tax policy has emerged as a contentious issue.
Donald Trump’s campaign promises to drastically reduce federal agency spending if elected, specifically targeting IRS resources, while Kamala Harris has said she supports increasing IRS staffing.
