Politics & Government

IRS Study: Many Laurel Businesses at Higher Risk for Audits

Officials identified Laurel and several neighboring communities as hotspots for potential tax cheats.

A study by the Internal Revenue Service finds that Laurel and other communities in the Washington, D.C. region are home to clusters of small businesses at higher risk of being audited, USA Today reports.

The study was conducted by the National Taxpayer Advocate, an independent office inside of the IRS.

Using a figure known as the Discriminant Inventory Function—a score which the IRS uses to measure the likelihood that a person or business will fudge their taxes—officials identified 350 communities across five metropolitan areas that are home to unusually high numbers of "likely" cheats.

Find out what's happening in Laurelwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Those areas include the District of Columbia, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Houston, and Atlanta.

Laurel was one of many communities in the D.C. region included in the study, which also identified Bowie, Riverdale Park, Russett, University Park, and Upper Marlboro as potential hotspots.

Find out what's happening in Laurelwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

According to USA Today, small businesses were targeted in the study because they have "more opportunity than the typical individual to cheat on their taxes," in part because many small businesses pay in cash.

Read the full story from USA Today, or view a full list of hotspot communites here.


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