Taxpayer Attitude Survey

 The IRS Oversight Board has surveyed the general public annually since 2002 on their attitudes on tax issues. According to the 2010 survey, 87% view cheating on income taxes as “not at all” acceptable and 80% believe that personal integrity has a great deal of an influence on reporting and paying their taxes honestly. Third-party reporting of income has a great deal of influence for 39% of respondents, while fear of an audit greatly influences 35% percent. When asked about the value of paid tax professionals’ advice, 59% answered “very valuable” (compared to 53% in 2009) while 28% answered “somewhat valuable” (compared to 32% in 2009). The complete 2010 Taxpayer Attitude Survey and previous annual surveys can be found at www.irsoversightboard.treas.gov .