The amount of taxes collected from Americans under President Joe Biden has soared compared to former President Donald Trump’s tenure, while tax enforcement has also risen, an analysis of Internal Revenue Service (IRS) data shows.
The IRS collected a total of $4.9 trillion in taxes for fiscal year 2022 (Oct. 1, 2021 to Sept. 30, 2022), according to the IRS’ newly released Data Book. At the same time, the IRS issued nearly $642 billion in refunds last year, putting the net amount of taxes collected at around $4.26 trillion.
By comparison, in fiscal year 2020, Trump’s final year in office, the IRS’ gross tax collections were $3.5 trillion. With nearly $736 billion in refunds, that puts the net total taxes collected at around $2.76 trillion, or around 35 percent less than during Biden’s second year in office.
For fiscal year 2021, Biden’s first year in office, the IRS’ gross tax collections amounted to $4.1 trillion. When subtracting the $1.1 trillion in refunds, that put the net total at $3 trillion, or 8 percent higher than during Trump’s final year in the White House.
Tax enforcement, too, has accelerated under Biden. Using the number of tax returns examined as a proxy for enforcement, there was a steady decline under Trump, with a recent low of around half a million in 2020. That figure jumped to around 750,000 in 2021 and, in 2022, it remained at roughly the same level.
IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said in an introduction to the 2022 Data Book that the agency’s commitment to maintaining a “visible, robust tax enforcement presence” is “strong.”
“During FY 2022, we continued to develop and utilize innovative approaches to better understand, detect, and resolve potential noncompliance,” Werfel said, adding that this includes “leveraging new technology and data analytics.”
“Our comprehensive and coordinated enforcement strategy has shown success,” he added, presumably referring to the rise in the amount of tax collection and the boost in enforcement.
Werfel added that the IRS’ work to transform itself into a “stronger, more modern” organization continued in 2022 and that he’s “confident this journey will pay significant dividends over time.”
By Tom Ozimek
