As a measure of just how desperate the federal government is for revenue, the IRS is moving on a compliance initiative pointed at the federal gift tax laws. As I stated in the October/November 2011, issue of Pilla Talks Taxes, the compliance initiative involves determining the identities of people who may have avoided gift tax return filing and payment obligations incurred in connection with real estate title transfers. To discover this, the IRS will now begin combing through California property title records.