Designated Federal Official

• Marian Adams - Wichita, KS - Designated Federal

Official Committee Members Present

• Bell, Kay - Austin, TX - Vice Chair
• Bland, Sandra - Bemidji, MN - Member
• Capehart, Craig - Dallas, TX - Member
• Colvin, A. Elizabeth - Austin, TX - Member
• Freeman, Christopher - Chaska, MN - Member
• Fretheim, Dan - Decorah, IA - Member
• Guthmann, Howard - St. Paul, MN - Member
• Lynch, Reagan - Midland, TX - Member
• Shah, Rajiv - Scottsdale, AZ - Member
• Rousseau, Richard - Harker Heights, TX - Member
• Shoemaker, Paul - Lincoln, NE - Member
• Stieger, Lee - Leavenworth, KS - Member
• Villarreal, Josefina - Corpus Christi - Member
• Woodard, Norma - Choctaw, OK - Member
• Wright, Kenneth - Chesterfield, MO - Chair

Committee Members Absent

None

TAP Staff

• DeTimmerman, Trish - Des Moines, IA - Acting TAP Manager
• Delzer, Mary Ann - Milwaukee, WI - Program Analyst
• Robb, Patti - Milwaukee, WI - Secretary

Ken Wright welcomed everyone to the call.  Quorum met.

• Joint Committee (JC) Report-out
• One issue was elevated by the JC. 

• Face-to-Face Meeting
• Wright is working on an agenda for the face-to-face meeting at the end of this month.

• Auto Extension Form 990, Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax – Lynch

Reagan Lynch sent a write up to Wright for review.  The issue will be sent to Forms and Publications for their review. 

• Improve Tax Payment Options

This has to do with the use of EFTPS for making payments.  Wright has another related issue and he will send to Kay Bell.  She is on the review team and they will determine if it will be worked.

• Issue Prioritization Subcommittee - Bell

# 4574 – VITA-AGI Limit – VITA committee is working a similar issue.  This issue should be sent to them for their review.  Rick Rousseau will take to the VITA Committee.  If they encounter resistance or decide not to work it, they will return it to Area 5 for work. 
ACTION: Rousseau to take issue 4574 to the VITA Committee for their consideration.
 
# 4640 – Forms 8109 – Deposit Coupon – The coupon is a machine readable form.  Mary Ann Delzer reported IRS is encouraging everyone to go to EFTPS.  IRS will not invest at this time to improve the technology to address this issue. 

# 4641 – Form 1040 Signature Options – Why can’t the Form 8879 or Form 8453 be used for signature when an e-filed return is rejected and then needs to be mailed.  Otherwise the taxpayer has to make another trip to the preparer to sign the paper return.
ACTION:  Delzer will send to Forms and Publications to see if it will be considered.
 
# 4651 – Disregarded Entity information reporting – This seems to be a wide-spread issue.  Wright is interested in working this one.

ACTION: Bell will put together the list of issues the subcommittee feels would be good issues to work and email to committee. 

Wright thinks a possible new issue is the ability for taxpayers to change their address on line.  You can do this through the online refund service – “Where’s My Refund.”  This is an issue we could write up and make a recommendation for improvement.   
ACTION: Delzer to research if change of address will be offered with new individual
e-services to be rolled out later this year.

Wright also found very few free file alliances that support Form 982 – excluding cancellation of debt.  Rousseau stated VITA is looking at broader offerings of service.  A subcommittee is working on a questionnaire for the TAP members to provide input.  Hold off on this issue to see what comes out of the VITA committee on this.  Colvin thinks this kind of depends on the VITA site as to whether they can address these issues.  Some can refer taxpayers to pro bono partners. 

Delzer reported in regard to a previous issue sent to Forms and Publications.  The W-7 instructions and Publication 1915 instructions did not provide the same guidance to taxpayers.  The February 2008 version of the Form W-7 now matches the Pub 1915.

Fourteen outreaches by Shoemaker, Guthmann, Stieger, Shah, Wright, and Bland. 

Lynch will finish working on issue # 4435, automatic extensions for Forms 990.

Villarreal to take Issue 4457, proof of parenthood, to EITC Committee to see if they are interested in working the issue—Villarreal is still working.

Communication – Bell - working on identifying new materials for outreaches.  Working on finishing up the annual report.

VITA--Colvin –most members are deeply involved in tax preparation so have not been doing a whole lot.

Forms and Pubs --Freeman –– IRS is sending stuff and we are making comments and sending back.

TAC --Fretheim – completing interviews with TAC managers and employees right now.  We have our face-to-face meeting next month and will be putting all the information together at that meeting.
Burden Reduction--Shah –– looking at the aging population and the issue of minimum distributions of IRA funds.  Identifying ways to simplify the form used.  Guthmann also shared concerns about the simplification of the Office in the Home deduction.    

Congratulated Patti Robb who was selected as the Junior Analyst for the Milwaukee office. 

We will be interviewing for a secretary in the Milwaukee office at the end of this week.

Barb Foley is leaving TAP for a position in W&I as an Analyst.  The management position in Milwaukee was posted and closed.  DeTimmerman’s detail will end on May 3, but she will be in San Antonio. 

Springfield town hall meting with the National Taxpayer Advocate will be on May 6 at the Trutter Center at Lincoln Land Community College.  Robb and Delzer will be attending the town hall to provide support.
Looking to recruit members in Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Oklahoma, and Texas.  In Area 5 we have 60 draft and 29 final applications.  We will be contacting the draft applicants to ask them to finalize them.  Need more applications from Kansas.    

Budget is a real issue at this time.  Bernie Coston will not be attending the face to face meeting for the rest of the year for this reason. 

Good meeting.  Everyone attended the meeting.  Good discussion on issues that will be followed up at the face to face meeting.