Quote:This isn't an IRS issue. This is a civil forfeiture issue. 

 

I beg to differ.  Read the articles that I linked to.

 

Quote: 

“The IRS deputizes these local law enforcement officers to go through suspicious activity reports and to identify cases where people are subject to forfeiture,” Johnson said. “So you have somebody who is not a federal official and yet is deputized to be enforcing federal law.”

 
In McLellan’s case, an affidavit was completed by a North Carolina law enforcement official, which indicated to Johnson that it was a state official likely combing through these suspicious activity reports who flagged the Fairmont convenience store, he said.
 
“The government has a financial incentive to broadly apply the forfeiture laws,” Johnson said. “When an agency like the IRS takes money under the forfeiture laws, that money goes back into the pockets of the agency and it’s available to the IRS to fund law enforcement activities without appropriation from Congress. It’s a powerful incentive for law enforcement to abuse civil forfeiture laws.”

 

It's about the power of the IRS to circumvent funding from Congress and grab money from innocent people.  The forfeiture laws were intended to catch illegal activity (drug money, etc.).  Instead it is being used to pretty much confiscate legally earned money from small businesses.  When a protest or challenge is made, they will usually offer to give back 50% of the confiscated money.  Many people will do this to avoid costly fees associated with taking it to court.

---