Why the IRS Apology for Asset Seizure is MeaninglessJoe Wright The culprit, he asserts, is a Congress that has enacted legislation in direct contradiction to the Constitution, enabling the IRS to operate with minimal restraint, empty oversight, and a complete reversal of American principles. The fact is: we are all presumed innocent until proven guilty but the permission that Congress has granted to the IRS end-runs that principle and instead embraces authoritarianism. Whats worse, is that similar to police who operate under civil asset forfeiture laws, 25% of what the IRS seizes goes straight into agency coffers (from an agency with an annual budget already north of $10 billion). Clearly this creates an incentive to violate the rights of citizens, and only strengthens the likelihood that this practice will flourish. From TechDirt: Heres the brain-bleeding explanation of IRSs civil forfeiture program. Civil forfeiture is an in rem proceeding against the property itself, not the owner of property. Civil forfeiture is a process that is separated from, and not dependent on, a criminal prosecution. Civil forfeiture can proceed administratively or judicially. Predictably, this has led to rampant abuse. The recently cited number of 147 targeted business over the course of a single year merely scratches the surface: According to the Institute for Justice, the Department of Justices Asset Forfeiture Fund held $93.7 million of seized assets in 1986. In 2008, that fund was greater than $1 billion Forcing the IRS to apologize is not a real solution from Congress; it means nothing without completely erasing the unconstitutional power the IRS has been given. authoritarian (noun) of, relating to, or favoring a concentration of power in a leader or an elite not constitutionally responsible to the people. Merriam-Webster Cant get any clearer than that. Related Article: Recently by Joe Wright: 