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December 4, 2009

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Study: Nevadans most likely to dodge taxes

Monday, April 13, 1998 | 8:34 a.m.

Tax experts attribute the high rates to several factors, including the state's large numbers of gamblers and tip earners who are considered more prone to tax fraud.

"Just like everyone else, the IRS knows you can drop in a couple of quarters and win a jackpot," said David Miller, H&R Block district manager. "People just want to report all of their losses, but not necessarily their winnings."

Miller said the IRS began targeting gamblers when legalized gambling spread outside of Nevada and New Jersey. Despite an increase in gambling, there wasn't a corresponding increase in the amount of winnings reported.

The study also found that the Nevadans most likely to be scrutinized were not the rich, but rather those earning less than $25,000.

That is because the state's average income - $38,264 - is not that high, said IRS spokesman Bob Norris.

The new study was released over the weekend by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, an affiliate of Syracuse University. It came up with the figures after analyzing tax-related records from the IRS and other agencies.

IRS officials said they were reviewing the clearinghouse's statistics and the agency tries to treat taxpayers equally, no matter where they live.

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