Hearing on the Tax Return Filing Season, Internal Revenue Service Operations, Fiscal Year 2009 Budget Proposals, and the IRS National Taxpayer Advocate’s Annual Report
FOCUS OF THE HEARING:
In 2007, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) collected $2.7 trillion in taxes and processed nearly 250 million tax returns, including 140 million individual income tax returns. The Subcommittee will discuss the current tax return filing season with a focus on taxpayer service and assistance, earned income tax credit outreach, and the status of economic stimulus payments.
The Subcommittee also will review IRS operations not related to the filing season. Specifically, the Subcommittee will look at examination rates, collection activities, the tax gap, electronic filing, and protection of taxpayer information. In July 2007, the IRS established a new office to focus on data protection and identity theft, including phishing schemes and online fraud. The Subcommittee will discuss activities of this office to notify and assist potential victims of identity theft and data loss incidents.
As part of its consideration of IRS operations, the Subcommittee will discuss the Administration’s fiscal year 2009 proposed budget for the IRS of $11.4 billion, an increase of 4.3 percent over the fiscal year 2008 level. The Subcommittee will examine the Administration’s priorities with respect to taxpayer services, enforcement, operations support, and business systems modernization. Further, the Subcommittee will consider the Administration’s compliance initiatives and budget proposals to close the tax gap.
Finally, the position of National Taxpayer Advocate was established by the 1996 Taxpayer Bill of Rights (Public Law 104-168). The purpose of the Taxpayer Advocate is to provide an independent system to address taxpayer problems not resolved by normal channels and to propose changes in the administrative practices of the IRS. The Taxpayer Advocate must submit a report each year to the House Committee on Ways and Means and the Senate Committee on Finance. The National Taxpayer Advocate will highlight key issues and recommendations from the December 2007 Report to Congress.