FROM THE OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Today the Internal Revenue Service announced a number of actions that have been taken to combat tax-evasion schemes involving credit cards issued by offshore banks-including issuing John Doe summonses to major credit card companies.

"The Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service are committed to combating tax evasion. I applaud the steps taken by the IRS in cracking down on the illegal use of offshore bank accounts to hide U.S. taxable income," stated Treasury Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy Mark Weinberger.

"This stepped up enforcement coupled with the Legislative and Administrative proposals the Treasury and IRS released last week demonstrates the Administration's commitment to pursue individuals and businesses who attempt to evade paying their tax," Weinberger stated.

One of the proposals would add a civil penalty, to the criminal penalties that may apply, for the failure to file the "Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts" (Form TD 90-22.1), which provides information about a taxpayer's interest in a foreign financial account.