Blowing The Whistle On Tax Cheating Businesses

By Marcus Gilmer in News on Oct 27, 2009 9:20PM

The City of Chicago is short on cash and they're looking for anyway to recoup some money, even if it means encouraging citizens to do some fiscal policing for them. Mayor Daley's 2010 budget includes something called the "Tax Whistleblower Program" which sets aside cash rewards for those who turn in businesses that are known to be tax cheats. And what will your reward be if you turn in a cheating business like so many of Joey Greco's victims? Initial plans are for a certain percentage of the amount recovered but it's still being tweaked.

Revenue Department spokesman Ed Walsh told the Sun-Times, "It's just another way of bringing people into compliance. It would probably be ... a business knowing that a competitor is not remitting a tax. An employee [of the tax-dodging business] could know that, too. Typically, you need to provide some type of incentive." One would hope that an upstanding citizen would turn in a cheating company anyway, but perhaps offering a cash reward - the Sun-Times calls them "bounties" and we're inclined to agree - is the only way to get what they need.