What happens when tax enforcement weakens? With 17% of millennials considering skipping their tax filing altogether, Blake and David dig into how IRS budget cuts might impact compliance and revenue. They analyze fascinating survey data revealing what taxpayers truly value when choosing between professional preparation and free options like Direct File. Plus, discover the accounting scandal forcing Financial Times to retract its Tesla analysis, exposing how GAAP complexity confounds even financial experts. You'll also learn why three major US cities face billion-dollar budget holes and the disturbing revelation that duplicate Medicaid payments are costing taxpayers billions—all while Tether still can't produce an audit after ten years of promises.

Sponsors
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RightWorks- http://accountingpodcast.promo/rightnow2025

Chapters

(00:00) - Introduction and Podcast Overview
(00:42) - Top Stories of the Week
(02:27) - Sponsor Messages and Event Announcements
(04:52) - Interview with Christina Ho on PCAOB
(07:57) - Discussion on IRS Cuts and Tax Compliance
(19:44) - Survey on IRS Direct File
(28:21) - AI's Impact on Tax Professionals
(29:14) - Discrepancies in Tax Software Results
(30:08) - Public Opinion on Tax Filing Services
(31:23) - Challenges for Tax Professionals
(33:56) - LA's Budget Crisis
(37:41) - Federal Government Spending Issues
(38:45) - Medicaid Duplicate Payments Scandal
(47:12) - Tether's Audit Controversy
(51:55) - Tesla's Financial Discrepancies
(57:33) - Big Four Transparency Rankings
(59:24) - Conclusion and Farewell

Show Notes

Tax Revenue Could Drop by 10 Percent Amid Turmoil at IRS

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/03/22/irs-tax-revenue-loss-federal-budget/

Survey: Some Americans Might Roll the Dice on Not Filing Their Taxes This Year Due to IRS Job Cuts

https://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/2025/03/26/survey-some-americans-might-roll-the-dice-on-not-filing-their-taxes-this-year-due-to-irs-job-cuts/157877/

Most Americans Are Interested in Using IRS Direct File to Prepare and File Their Taxes

https://taxpolicycenter.org/briefs/most-americans-are-interested-using-irs-direct-file-prepare-and-file-their-taxes

TurboTax vs Free Tax USA: A Shocking Price Comparison

https://www.tiktok.com/@carolinesadventure/video/7482613418801859870

Survey: 91% of Americans Think Filing Taxes Should Be Free

https://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/2025/03/11/survey-91-of-americans-think-filing-taxes-should-be-free/157176/

Why you should think twice before claiming an income-tax extension. ‘This is not the year to do your normal procrastinating.’

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-you-should-think-twice-before-claiming-an-income-tax-extension-this-is-not-the-year-to-do-your-normal-procrastinating-89937e0d

LA Faces $1 Billion Budget Hole, Warns of Thousands of Layoffs

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-03-20/la-faces-1-billion-budget-hole-warning-thousands-of-layoffs

WSJ investigation: Medicaid paid health insurers billions by covering the same patients twice

https://www.risehealth.org/insights-articles/wsj-investigation-medicaid-paid-health-insurers-billions-by-covering-the-same-patients-twice/

Tether seeks Big Four firm for its first full financial audit — Report

https://cointelegraph.com/news/stablecoin-issuer-tether-big-four-firm-full-reserve-audit-report

Financial Times retracts report on Tesla’s alleged shady accounting

https://www.teslarati.com/financial-times-retracts-report-tesla-shady-accounting/

The Big 4 Transparency Accounting Awards

https://big4transparency.beehiiv.com/p/the-big-4-transparency-accounting-awards

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IRS Officials Claim Cuts Will Widen Tax Gap by $500 Billion

The Accounting Podcast

IRS Officials Claim Cuts Will Widen Tax Gap by $500 Billion