The Illinois State Government is always making concerted efforts to obtain tax compliance with filing, reporting, and payment of taxes by Illinoisans. However, in times of statewide budget and economic crisis, the Illinois Department of Revenue (IDOR) seems to place more attention and manpower behind tax compliance and collection. Recently, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan and the IDOR collected more than $22 million in unpaid tax payments from Illinois gasoline station operators.

In October 2009, the IDOR implemented a voluntary disclosure compliance program, increased audit activity, and escalated its collection efforts which generated $12.7 million in revenue. Many of the gasoline owners now face criminal tax evasion charges.

Tax evasion is the intentional and illegal avoidance of paying mandatory taxes to the government. There are several different types of tax evasion, which can include: failing to file a tax return, making false statements (such as false tax deductions or failure to report taxable income on a tax return). However, it is important to note that a taxpayer’s failure to pay his or her taxes due to his or her not having the financial ability to pay tax is not a crime. Many taxpayers erroneously believe that if they cannot afford to pay their taxes, they do not have any reasonable incentive to file a tax return since, in their mind, they are already facing a compromising predicament. Simply put, this is the wrong line of thinking. Taxpayers can minimize failure to file penalties and related interest by timely filing their tax return. Additionally, failure to file a tax return could rise to the level of a criminal matter – whereas a taxpayer’s inability to pay taxes due to lack of financial ability is a civil matter. The moral of the story is, do not lead yourself down the slippery path of a non-tax return filer, or even worse, a tax evader. There are always alternative methods of resolution that can be explored by contacting a competent tax attorney if a taxpayer cannot afford to pay his or her taxes.