TAP 04-023

Financial Literacy — Adult Education

Statement of Issue:

There is an educational gap for many taxpayers in regards to understanding the importance of tax obligations and having the basic skills to file a simple tax return. This gap is higher in taxpayer populations such as lower income, some minority groups, people with disabilities, and those who are not English proficient. Without the basic understanding of taxes and the consequences of noncompliance, it is impossible to have financial stability or establish good credit

Proposal:

• Encourage the IRS W&I Operating Division to devote resources to promote tax education for adults with existing and future coalitions.
• Develop tax modules for the adult learner or modify the existing tax modules on www.irs.gov for use in financial literacy programs such as Money Smart developed by FDIC, or those found on financial institutional websites such as Fannie Mae.
• Develop these products in different languages as well as for the visually impaired.
• Encourage existing Financial Literacy websites to link to the IRS tax module website
• Produce IRS' own financial literacy CD-Rom and incorporate a module on taxes.