In the top-right corner of every US tax form, there is an OMB control number. It stands for estimated annual burden imposed on the public. The estimated burden consists of time spent multiplied by implied hourly cost. These estimates may appear innocent but they actually have a direct impact on the government, such as agency head count and budgets. The estimate for Form 1040 is as follows:

  > [0] The average burden for taxpayers filing Form 1040 is about 15 hours and $280

If I add up my time as well as the tax accountant's time and fees to file taxes, this is quite underestimated. However, this is anecdotal evidence. What would be great is to have two fields on these forms where tax payers can enter the actual amount of time and expenses required to complete them, as part of the feedback. The agencies can then use the median to update their assumptions and act accordingly.

[0] https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2014/04/30/2014-09...