Area 5 Committee Meeting Minutes

April 11, 2005

Present:

• Steve Landauer
• Robert Meyers
• Stanley Miller
• Thomas Seuntjens
• Robert Stokes
• Jeana Warren
• Charles Wendt
• William White
• Nan Wilson
• Warren Wong
• Lillian Woo

Absent:

• Clifford McKenzie
• Mary Suther

Staff:

• Dianne Glass, DFO
• Sandy McQuin, TAP Manager, Acting DFO
• Mary Ann Delzer, Program Analyst
• Patti Robb, Note Taker

Public:

• Steve Bankler

Welcome/Announcements/Review Agenda
Wilson welcomed the committee members.

Area 5 Chair Report
The March minutes were approved without changes.

Joint Committee Report
We are in the middle of recruiting new members right now. Posters and flyers were mailed out to each committee member. Please post them somewhere in your community. Hard copies of the annual report are still available. Contact the office if you need additional copies. Please read Nina Olson’s, National Taxpayer Advocate, testimony concerning the closing of TACs this was sent via email.

Sub-Committee Report-Out

• AMT Education – Woo
  The sub-committee has met several times. We hope to have the final recommendation to the committee by the May meeting for consideration. We have had help from people from outside the committee; John Hollingsworth, member of Area 6; Linda Bader and Leonard Steinberg, who are retired panel member. McQuin interjected that there has been a lot of media regarding AMT. There have been recent articles in the Wall Street Journal, Time Magazine, and the New York Times.

• TAC Partnering – Meyers
  The Commissioner is looking to closing 70 to 100 Taxpayer Assistance Centers (TAC). TAP can use this information as a springboard to recommend that the TACs stay open. Meyers said the centers that are going to be closed seem to be the ones most needed. We will have another report for the May meeting.

• TAS Delegated Authority – White
  We are still waiting for a decision from the NTA regarding recommendations made by a TAS task force. Chris Wagner, (Deputy Taxpayer Advocate), Elayne Goldstein, and Olson have a conference call scheduled regarding these recommendations. McQuin said she hoped to have more information for the May meeting.

• Fraud Form Availability – McKenzie
  Report is tabled until the May meeting.

• Form 433 A/B Task Force – Wilson
  Our recommendations were already sent forward (See Attachment One). We will let you know when we receive their response.

TAS Gallup Poll
Glass and McQuin shared some the sample questions used by Gallup when polling taxpayers about their experiences after contacting TAS. Glass said the LTAs get results on a quarterly basis. The Department of the Treasury requires these measures to identify areas where improvement is needed (See Attachment Two).

New Issues
There was one new issue received this month. The taxpayer said it is unclear how a Limited Liability Corporation (LLC) would fill out Form W-9.

ACTION: Put this issue in the parking lot with the other W-9 issue.

White said E-File PIN rejects are a problem. His concern is that many people who e-file their own returns, are frequently unaware that the return has rejected due to an error. They have to check to see if the return has been accepted or rejected. Many of the On-line and box products use e-mail to notify taxpayers of the return filing status. Some taxpayers do not receive the automatic notification.

ACTION: The TAS Delegation Authority subcommittee will start working on this issue. They will plan a conference call to decide how to proceed.

ACTION Item Review

1. Woo will write the AMT press release for the May meeting.
2. McKenzie will write up a summary on the fraud form issue for the May meeting.

All other action items were completed.

Outreach
Woo did five outreaches. She met with three Congressional offices and spoke to them about recruitment. A CBS reporter called and asked her if she would do an interview about AMT. She will be interviewed after the filing season.

Stokes met with his two State Legislators on March 5. He also spoke to the Lions Club on March 9. (See Attachment Three)

Office Report
McQuin reported that as of today, there were 217 final applications submitted and 251 applications still in draft form. The applications encompassed 44 states as well as Washington, D.C. We have applicants from every state in Area 5. Fortunately, TAP did receive publicity during about recruitment. Recruitment announcements were also sent to Congressional offices.

Public Input
None.

Closing/Assessment
White noted that Delzer sent out the meeting surveys after the March meeting but only two were returned. The staff will not send out the surveys from now on so if you have comments about the meeting, send them directly to Delzer and Wilson. Wilson said if there were no comments, we will go back to using the written survey. Woo expressed disappointment that some of the sub-committees are still waiting for responses. Maybe they should move onto another issue.

Meeting Adjourned

Attachment One

COMMENTS ON FORM 433-A/B
Submitted by Jeana Warren, Nan Wilson, Lillian Woo
Taxpayer Advocacy Panel – Area 5

We appreciate the opportunity to submit comments on the OIC Collection Information Statement, Form 433. The following suggestions are directed toward making the form easier to complete, thereby reducing the number of incomplete returns and the number of days needed to get the proper information.

General Comments
Both forms are very comprehensive, well organized and clearly written. The attachment reminder at the end of relevant sections is a good addition and a needed reminder that attachments are required.

However, we suggest that:

1. Three separate forms, one each for wage earners, self-employed individuals and businesses, are preferable to having just two forms A and B.
2. Since there is so little room to write in the answers, both in the length of the lines and the small space between the lines, larger type would make the forms easier to complete.
3. There needs to be a box to check " N/A" in relevant sections since the instructions are confusing. Does every space need to be filled in, even those where "no" is checked?
   In sections where a “no” can be checked, the applicant could be referred to the next section rather than filling in all the blanks with “N/A.”
4. The box in the left hand column asking the applicant to check when a section is complete is superfluous. A “N/A’ box could be placed in this area.

Specific Comments on 433-A

1. Since there is much in 433-A that does not pertain to those who are solely wage earners, it should be a separate form. Section 2; Section 7, item 22; Section 8; and Section 9, items 27, 28 could be eliminated. This would allow room for larger print and more space for writing answers without increasing the number of pages.
2. Section 1: If the “separated” box is checked, is it necessary to include the spouse’s SSN?
3. Section 2: Under Attachments it states the “prior” 3 months. Elsewhere the text says the “past” 3 months. For consistency, use “past” in every case.
4. Section 3: To allow for more than one employer, there should be a note to attach additional sheets if necessary.
5. Section 4: Under Attachments, the preferred spelling is “payer.”
6. Section 5, #11: Do wage earners generally know how to find a bank's routing number?
   Perhaps a facsimile of a check could be included.
7. Section 5, #15: Since there may be more than 2 lines of credit, there should be a note to attach additional sheets if necessary.
8. Section 6: "judgment" is misspelled in two instances.

Specific Comment on 433-B

1. Section 7, # 37, 38: There needs to be more lines for debt and other payments, or possibly suggest an attachment if needed.

Attachment Two

Frequently Asked Questions About The Customer Satisfaction Survey for the Taxpayer Advocate Service

Background:
The IRS has been conducting customer surveys for several years to create a more customer-oriented agency by trying to see what we do through taxpayers' eyes. These anonymous surveys help us understand taxpayer needs, to determine how well we are meeting those needs, and to make improvements. They give us a baseline to measure our progress over time at improving our performance to gain greater customer satisfaction.

In January 2001, TAS began its own survey of taxpayers and practitioners who have had cases recently closed by TAS. Gallup, the worldwide opinion research firm, is under contract to conduct this survey and selects the sample of taxpayers to be surveyed and receive and tabulate the results.

To ensure that responses are handled confidentially, Gallup maintains confidentiality over who is called. Gallup keeps any information that would identify either the respondent or the TAS employee who assisted them confidential. Gallup produces quarterly statistical reports that focus on each Area Office and provides national summaries.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

• Why is this survey being done?
  Section 801.4 of Treasury Decision 8830 (September 7, 1999), established a balanced performance measurement system, which includes the requirement to measure customer satisfaction.
  
  TAS is conducting this survey to determine whether the services we provide to taxpayers are meeting their needs. The surveys tell us whether taxpayers feel they were treated fairly, how long it took to resolve their issue, and their overall satisfaction with the service they received. This is a common practice in business and the results tell us what we are doing well and what we may need to improve from the customer's perspective.

• Who is being surveyed?
  Taxpayers or their representatives who have had direct, recent contact (in person, over the phone, or by correspondence) with TAS in resolving their problems. Gallup is given a weekly listing of cases closed by TAS in the previous week. From this list, Gallup contacts a statistically valid sample of customers. Customer satisfaction surveys are also being conducted by other IRS divisions (Wage and Investment, Small Business and Self-Employed, etc.).

• How is the survey conducted?
  Upon receipt of the weekly data, Gallup selects a random sample and sends the respondent a letter from the Commissioner alerting them that they have been selected for a telephone interview. Within one week, Gallup calls the respondent and conducts the interview, which takes a few minutes.

• How often are customer surveys conducted?
  Customer satisfaction surveys are conducted for TAS on a continual basis by Gallup beginning with calendar year 2001.

• What were taxpayers asked on these surveys?
  In addition to answering some factual questions about themselves, (such as who they dealt with in IRS before coming to TAS), taxpayers are asked to rate whether they had an adequate opportunity to present their case, how well TAS explained information, how easy it was to reach TAS, and their overall level of satisfaction. The current questionnaire is contained in the Attachment to this document.

• Are survey responses confidential; will local offices see any taxpayer surveys?
  Individual survey responses are not shared with local offices, which receive only summaries of all the survey responses. To ensure that survey responses do not allow identification of either the respondent or the TAS employee who assisted them, identifying information (name, address, phone number, case number, etc.) are stripped from the Gallup data.

• How will the information that taxpayers provide be used?
  Individual survey responses are combined and local offices are given the accumulated statistics along with Gallup's identification of opportunities for improvement that are most important to our customers. The first year’s surveys provide a baseline against which to measure future improvements. Results will not be used to evaluate individual employees or managers.
  
  Local offices will work with their Area Offices in developing action plans for addressing opportunities for improvement identified in the survey reports.
  
  The following additional background points may be helpful:
  
  • IRS has been using contractors to conduct customer surveys since 1994.
  • Gallup is given minimal information so they can contact prospective survey participants. Gallup employees and physical work areas are subjected to a stringent security investigation and must meet the same requirements as IRS for protecting data from unauthorized disclosures.
  • Since IRS does not know who is being surveyed, if a taxpayer decides not to participate, it will not affect their taxes or any tax-related decisions about them. Should they choose not to participate, they may call a toll-free number (1-800-788-9987) to opt out.
  • IRS and Gallup have taken a number of precautions to ensure that all information provided by or about the taxpayer is kept confidential to avoid the possibility that anyone could identify a taxpayer by their responses or their characteristics.

Attachment Three

Speaker Reports for 03/01/05 to 03/28/05