The IRS released its latest data book outlining statistics relating to the previous tax year in a new format which, among other things, puts new emphasis on compliance and enforcement.

The new "Compliance Presence" section of the report shows that, in fiscal year 2019, the IRS audited 771,095 tax returns, resulting in nearly $17.3 billion in recommended additional tax. Of these audits, the vast majority were done via correspondence, with just 26.2 percent done in the field. In terms of how much refund fraud was prevented, though, the proportion reverses: In the 2019 tax year, the IRS said that correspondence examinations prevented $44.3 million worth of refund fraud, compared to $3.8 billion from field examinations.

The IRS Criminal Investigation division, meanwhile, completed 1,183 legal source tax crime cases, which involve tax crimes arising from legal industries, legal occupations and legally earned income. That division also completed 943 illegal-source financial crime cases, which involve the proceeds from unlawful sources such as money laundering, and 671 narcotics-related financial crime cases, often conducted in cooperation with other law enforcement agencies.

The report did note that the data in the report reflects an ongoing trend of increasing returns filed and decreasing resources to examine these returns. It said that in 2010, the IRS received 230.4 million returns and employed 13,879 revenue agents, while in 2019 it received 253.million returns and employed 8,526 revenue agents.

On the more workaday side of things, these 253 million returns resulted in $3.5 trillion in taxes collected by both individuals and businesses, making up more than 95 percent of the gross receipts of the entire country, while also giving out $452 billion worth of refunds. The report added that the cost of collections has dropped to its lowest level in 75 years, with the IRS spending just 33 cents per $100 collected.

The IRS also included data from a recent survey about people's attitudes towards taxes. It found that the majority of people are OK with paying taxes and want to be compliant. However, in response to the statement "it is every American's civic duty to pay taxes" 5 percent either mostly or completely disagreed. Further, in response to the question, "What is an acceptable amount to cheat on taxes?" while 87 percent said "not at all acceptable," 9 percent said they were OK with "a little here and there," and 3 percent said "as much as possible."