CHICAGO HUSTLE: 'Obamacare' cops: $1 billion to force new tax compliance. 16,000 new IRS agents to be required under health-care reform..

Collecting taxes under the Democrats' newly passed health-care plan will cost the federal government more than $1 billion a year in salaries alone, Republicans in Congress estimate.

The legislation will require the IRS to hire as many as 16,500 additional auditors, agents and other employees to investigate and collect billions in new taxes imposed on Americans, according to a House Committee on Ways and Means Committee Republican report prepared March 18 for ranking members Reps. Dave Camp, R-Mich., and Charles Boustany, R-La.

In March 2009, the federal government's average annual salary was $42,035 for tax examiners, $91,507 for internal revenue agents and $63,547 for tax specialists, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics "Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition."

Averaging the three pay grade averages yields an estimated $65,696 per IRS worker hired, assuming an equal number of tax examiners, internal revenue agents and tax specialists. READ MORE...