IRS watchdog warns of scaled-back service in agency plans
WASHINGTON (AP) — The IRS is planning to push you to fire up the computer rather than calling for tax help, but the agency's in-house watchdog say that could freeze out millions of taxpayers or force them to pay for advice.
As part of a plan that would focus more on online accounts for the 150 million individual taxpayers and 11 million businesses seeking help and information, the IRS may soon dramatically scale back telephone and face-to-face service, National Taxpayer Advocate Nina Olson said in her annual report to Congress.
Olson said the IRS should be more open about its plans and that service cutbacks may cause an increasing number of people to turn to tax preparers and software such as TurboTax to file their returns.
That would increase tax compliance costs for millions of filers.
"Implicit in the plan — and explicit in internal discussion — is an intention on the part of the IRS to substantially reduce telephone and face-to-face interaction with taxpayers," Olson's report said. "The key unanswered question is by how much. ... It is incumbent upon the IRS to be much more specific about how much personal taxpayer assistance it expects to provide."
The IRS said Olson's report did not paint an accurate picture. It said taxpayers want new options to interact with the agency and that moving more communications online would free up resources for traditional services.
"The IRS remains fully committed to personal service to taxpayers, and the IRS believes increasing the availability of self-service interaction frees up in-person resources for taxpayers who truly need them, including those who are not comfortable online or don't have personal access to a computer," the statement said......
Now you have two sides of a strange new story -- the IRS' side and that of something National Taxpayer Advocate. It's good we have a translator for the IRS' doubletalk, because this time the blather is even more disconnected from reality than usual.
Calling the IRS a "Service" was one of the greatest acts of hubris in modern history. For it to talk of itself as a source of actual service is vulgar beyond belief -- even offensive. Its purpose is only one thing, gougling the public and business for mostly unlawful "tax" payments to keep the evil global new world order going. In short, it's a hitman. Plumbers and shopkeepers have to give major blood every payday so Congressmen can live large in DC and drop bombs on wedding parties in countries too relatively small or weak to defend themselves.
So the only "service" it offers is gangland -- you pay us the protection money or fill in this space with any complaints or problems. During the depression the IRS has helped cause, the space -- which started the size of a tooth -- has kept shrinking, to the point that you need a magnifying glass to see it.
Remember the old wall poster parodying bureaucratic forms saying that type thing? The space was a tiny "check the box"-style one. Can't find an exemplar to share paste in, but baby boomers will remember them.
For the second or third time since the 2008 crash, IRS is warning that the only "service" it offers is newly failing and faltering. The Taxpayer Advocate among the real benefits brought by the Taxpayer Bills of Rights that have been legislated in response to citizens' demands for relief, and it is actually doing its job with these warnings. When the first such Bill was established I couldn't believe it was more than mere window dressing, but Dr. Clarkson used to refer to it as somewhat substantial.
The Kafkaseque irony of this real picture is greater than any satire of it such as the movie Harry's War. Many people might call it "ridiculous", but it's outrageous -- shockingly bad. The news we want and deserve to hear is that the IRS is closing its doors. Who knows, it may be further down the pike!
Dear God, let that be a positive portent only.
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