[kerng]

This. It could be so simple. Have the IRS suggest what they think I owe - they can have all the metadata, and I'll happily just pay the taxes. If someone doesn't agree, they can do their own return. The current system is so inefficient and wastes a lot of people's time.

[klenwell]

> Have the IRS suggest what they think I owe - they can have all the metadata, and I'll happily just pay the taxes.

What's funny is that they will. After the fact. I got a notice last year from the IRS about some back taxes I owed because I forgot to include some stock I sold in my taxes for that year.

They were right. I had overlooked it. But their figure for what I owed was a little higher than what I calculated it to be. I sent back a revised tax return with a check and an explanation for how I arrived at my number and the matter was closed.

So just to reaffirm: the obstacle is more political than technical.

[skellera]

That creates a one way correction relationship. You will always let them know if you owe them less but never if you owe them more.

[ceejayoz]

I'd imagine there'd be a "do you have unreported income or other unusual situations to disclose" step that'd open you to prosecution if you deliberately omitted stuff. It's not like they wouldn't do audits any more.

[Legogris]

What OP is saying is that it's in the government's to keep things as they are, since if you overestimate your taxes by e.g. missing out on deductions, they won't have to make a correction on that.

[Analemma_]

[citation needed]. The IRS has asked repeatedly to introduce return-free filing, only to be blocked by Congress after their paymasters at Intuit and H&R Block voiced discontent with the possibility of their revenue stream being shut off.

[em3rgent0rdr]

> "they can have all the metadata"

How about instead of big-brother style "hand all your metadata over to the state", that instead the state releases an open-source program you can run that collects & analyzes all your metadata and then produces the bill?