Senate Finance Taxation Subcommittee hearing May 11: 'Closing the Tax Gap...Role of Offshore Tax Evasion'

Because government office buildings are currently not open to the public, the hearing is being livestreamed and available to view free of charge, according to the Senate Finance Committee's website, which may be seen by clicking here.

The extent to which the hearing is expected to focus on the taxation of individuals, as opposed to corporations, wasn't immediately known. However, one of those currently  scheduled to speak, as a "witness", is Nina E. Olson, who is executive director of the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Taxpayer Rights, which she says she founded the day after she retired from 18-plus years as the IRS's National Taxpayer Advocate, in 2019. As National Taxpayer Advocate, Olson, pictured left, often spoke out forcefully on behalf of American expatriates.

The hearing comes at a time when the new administration of President Biden is proposing a raft of tax changes aimed at getting wealthy American individuals and highly-profitable American companies to pay more taxes, in an effort to begin to deal with the country's huge deficits, which have grown substantially recently as a result of government programs set up in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Others scheduled to speak, also as witnesses, include Barry Johnson, acting chief and research and analytics officer, IRS; Doug O’Donnell, deputy commissioner of Services & Enforcement for the IRS; the Honorable J. Russell George, Treasury Inspector General For Tax Administration at the U.S. Treasury; and Charles O. Rossotti, former IRS commissioner (1997-2002). Member statements will be given by Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, and South Dakota Republican Sen. John Thune.

The hearing is set to begin at 2:30pm Washington time (7:30pm UK time, 8:30 Central European Time). For more information and to watch a live video of the hearing, click here.

Individuals and organizations interested in sharing their views on the topic of tax revenue being lost as a result of non-compliance and tax evasion are invited by the subcommittee to submit them "in a Word document... single-spaced... not exceeding 10 pages in length." No other file type will be accepted, the subcommittee says.

Such statements would need to be received no later than two weeks after the hearing, which would be by May 25. They would need to be mailed to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or mailed 

Statements should be mailed – ("not faxed") – to:

Senate Committee on Finance
Attn. Editorial and Document Section
Rm. SD-219
Dirksen Senate Office Bldg.
Washington, DC   20510-6200
USA

The Senate Subcommittee on Taxation and IRS Oversight hearing comes less than three weeks after a full Senate Finance Committee hearing, also virtual and live-screened as well as recorded, on how the country's "international tax policy" was seen to be impacting U.S. workers, jobs and investment.