IRS and State Reduction in Taxpayer Service
According to the National Taxpayer Advocate, the IRS budget funding gap is negatively affecting taxpayer services. The IRS budget has been shrinking annually, with a decrease of 9.9% compared to the 2010 budget. Adjusting for inflation and other factors, the estimated reduction is about 17%. At the same time, IRS workload has increased to integrate the Affordable Care Act, Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act and legislation to extend expiring laws. This affects implementation of the Taxpayer Bill of Rights made public in 2014 which includes the Right to Quality Service, which requires training IRS staff, retaining quality staff with adequate pay, and hiring in sufficient numbers. The modernization effort that is part of a ten year plan will go unfunded for this year, delaying necessary software upgrades.
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