"Werfel Drops Hint, Seeks Early End to Employee Retention Credit"

Firm Partners, Joel Crouch and Damon Rowe were quoted in the July 27, 2023 Tax Notes article, "Werfel Drops Hint, Seeks Early End to Employee Retention Credit: written by Jonathan Curry. The pandemic-era business relief program wrapped up at the end of 2021, but taxpayers can continue to file ERC claims for the refund through April 15, 2025 and Commissioner Werfel says this is rapidly becoming a problem. The thought is the percentage of legitimate claims coming in is declining and the agency has begun a new phase of increased scrutiny of ERC claims. In the article, Mr. Rowe, (former head of the IRS Office of Fraud Enforcement), cautioned that while the IRS may be giving later-filed claims extra scrutiny, the mere fact that a claim was filed late "should not have any bearing on its veracity and validity." Mr. Crouch further commented, "that while some taxpayers may be falling prey to unscrupulous promoters, others may have delayed filing so they could get their supporting documentation in order. They may just be wanting to make sure they get their t's crossed and their i's dotted."