Bangladesh, March 7 -- The number of criminal referrals made by the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) against large corporations and ultrawealthy taxpayers has dropped dramatically during the first year of President Donald Trumps return to the White House, according to newly released data obtained by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ). The figures suggest a sharp slowdown in the federal governments pursuit of potential tax evasion among the richest Americans and major corporations, raising concerns among tax experts and former officials about enforcement capacity and fairness in the US tax system.

The data indicates that the IRS referred at most two cases of suspected tax evasion involving ultrawealthy indiv...