They would include, for example, nontax statutes peculiarly adaptable to promoting compliance with the internal revenue laws and maintaining the federal tax system’s integrity The statute is not related merely because tax and nontax statutory violations stem from the same Lictual base.)

In other words, tax returns and tax return information, including taxpayer return information itself, are available to the very many Treasury Department employees who are in any way involved with all the tax laws and a host of other laws.

So much for confidentiality.

In addition, returns and return information (including taxpayer return information) are available to Justice Department attorneys (including all of the various United States Attorneys, in every state and federal district throughout America) “if these attorneys are personally and directly engaged in a proceeding (or investigation which may result in a proceeding) before a federal grand jury or any federal or state court in a matter involving tax administration.”

So it’s obvious that far from being confidential, tax information is readily available to a great many government officials.

But what I’ve said so far, has only to do with disclosure of tax returns and tax return information. The next question is: what use can be made of it?

Under Section 6 1 03 (h) (4) of the Internal Revenue Code, a tax return or return information may be disclosed in a variety of circumstances in either a federal or state judicial or administrative proceeding related to tax administration.more