IRS Failed to Give Complete Cost of Direct File, GAO Says (1)

The IRS has so far failed to follow best practices in its cost estimates for its free electronic filing tool, risking making longer-term decisions without full information, a government watchdog has found.

The Government Accountability Office said in a report released Tuesday that the office and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration found the Internal Revenue Service had no documentation to support its analysis of the cost of its Direct File tool and didn’t include start-up costs, which could be substantial.

“Without a comprehensive accounting of costs, IRS’s estimates could understate the full amount of resources required to develop ...