Watchdog says tax law too complex for most filers

FILE - This Jan. 1, 2013 file photo shows the Ohio Clock on Capitol Hill in Washington striking midnight as the Senate continues to work on the fiscal cliff. The Internal Revenue Service says late changes to federal tax laws should mean only a short delay for most taxpayers to file their 2012 returns. The agency said Tuesday that more than 120 million taxpayers ? about 80 percent of all filers ? should be able to start filing their federal returns on Jan. 30. Others will have to wait until late February or March to file because the agency needs time to update and test its systems. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

FILE - This Jan. 1, 2013 file photo shows the Ohio Clock on Capitol Hill in Washington striking midnight as the Senate continues to work on the fiscal cliff. The Internal Revenue Service says late changes to federal tax laws should mean only a short delay for most taxpayers to file their 2012 returns. The agency said Tuesday that more than 120 million taxpayers ? about 80 percent of all filers ? should be able to start filing their federal returns on Jan. 30. Others will have to wait until late February or March to file because the agency needs time to update and test its systems. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? A government watchdog says the nation's tax law is so thick and complicated that businesses and individuals spend more than 6 billion hours a year complying with filing requirements. That's the equivalent of 3 million people working full-time, year-round.

As a result, about 90 percent of filers will either pay a tax preparer or use a computer software service to help file their federal tax returns this spring.

National Taxpayer Advocate Nina E. Olson ranks complexity as the most serious tax problem facing taxpayers and the IRS in her annual report to Congress on Wednesday.

Momentum is building in Congress to overhaul the tax code for the first time since 1986. But Washington's divided government has yet to show it can successfully tackle such an issue.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2013-01-09-US-Taxes-Too-Complicated/id-0891f4fdef774844a383a6407c4afce0

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