j.m@talk
12-17-2006, 01:51 PM
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In news bound to surprise absolutely no one, a survey released on Friday found that the U.S. government agency that prints money is better liked than the agency that collects it.
Agencies that hand out money and other benefits fared much better than the tax-collecting Internal Revenue Service in the University of Michigan's annual customer-service survey of the U.S. government.
The money-printing U.S. Mint scored an 87 out of 100, on a par with commercial retailers like Amazon.com.
Agencies like the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. and the Railroad Retirement Board that provide cash and health care benefits to retirees also scored well among those they serve.
The IRS scored a 51 among individuals who file paper tax returns, and a 52 among large and mid-sized businesses. Individuals who only file electronic tax returns gave the IRS a respectable score of 76.
Overall, the U.S. government averaged a 72.3, the highest score since the survey began in 1999.
But at 73, the Medicare health insurance program recorded its lowest score since the survey's start, possibly because of confusion surrounding its new prescription drug benefit.
http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/us/nws/p/reuters120.gif
Agencies that hand out money and other benefits fared much better than the tax-collecting Internal Revenue Service in the University of Michigan's annual customer-service survey of the U.S. government.
The money-printing U.S. Mint scored an 87 out of 100, on a par with commercial retailers like Amazon.com.
Agencies like the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. and the Railroad Retirement Board that provide cash and health care benefits to retirees also scored well among those they serve.
The IRS scored a 51 among individuals who file paper tax returns, and a 52 among large and mid-sized businesses. Individuals who only file electronic tax returns gave the IRS a respectable score of 76.
Overall, the U.S. government averaged a 72.3, the highest score since the survey began in 1999.
But at 73, the Medicare health insurance program recorded its lowest score since the survey's start, possibly because of confusion surrounding its new prescription drug benefit.
http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/us/nws/p/reuters120.gif