Why Does The Government Want to Know How Much is in Your Bank Account?

Why Does The Government Want to Know How Much is in Your Bank Account?

Vance Cariaga   Thu, October 14, 2021,

If you’re concerned that the U.S. government wants to monitor your bank account, you’re not alone. Plenty of lawmakers, consumers and banking trade groups are pushing back against the idea, which was proposed in May by the Treasury Department as part of its budget request.

But the government has its reasons for such a proposal, and they mainly have to do with President Joe Biden’s desire to crack down on unpaid taxes, mostly from wealthy Americans and big businesses. Those unpaid taxes total about $7 trillion, The New York Times reported, and the Biden administration wants that money to help fund social and economic programs.

Under the Treasury Department’s proposal, banks would be required to note how much money goes into and out of bank accounts, with the exception of accounts that have less than $600 of inflows a year, or whose balances are below $600, CBS News reported. No individual transactions would be listed, and Treasury officials insist such a plan would not lead to more audits of middle-income Americans.

But banks and their trade groups are not happy about the proposal, and they’re showing their displeasure by running advertising and letter-writing campaigns to raise awareness about it. This in turn has led to an avalanche of phone calls, emails and complaints from concerned personal and small-business account holders.

“We have heard a lot from our customers about their concerns about their privacy,” Jill Castilla, CEO of the single-branch Citizens Bank of Edmond in Oklahoma, told The New York Times. “I’ve gotten calls, emails, and then we’ve had many customers come in.”

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https://finance.yahoo.com/news/why-does-government-want-know-193640228.html