Designated Federal Official
Teresa Thompson

Members Present
Milissa Bensen, Vice-Chair
Marilynn Clapp
Dean Conder
Laura Criel
Steve Maisch
Neil Mitchell
Joe Shields, Chair
Ed Uhrig

Members Absent
George Bates
Eileen Birge
Harris Widmer

Staff
Judi Nicholas, Program Manager
Dave Coffman, Program Analyst
Marla Ofilas, Secretary

Opening
Teresa opened the meeting and Joe welcomed the participants. Marla conducted roll call and a quorum was met. There was no citizen input.

Meeting Minutes Approval
Minutes for both February and March 2008 were reviewed.
DECISION: The full committee approved the minutes for both February and March 2008.

Outreach Review
Milissa informed the committee that recent outreach numbers are lower than those from this time last year.  In February 2008, 205 contacts were made.  Of the 205, 130 were from an outreach presentation by Marilynn.      

2008 TAP Recruitment
Judi reported that letters were sent to various large employers and labor unions to spread the word on recruitment. At this time there are no applicants for South Dakota, Wyoming, or Idaho. Judi asked the members to assist in getting the word out.  Ed asked for another copy of the recruitment press release.
ACTION: Judi will send Ed the TAP recruitment press release.

Taxpayer Burden Subcommittee Report

• Issue #4376 (Check Box –No Expiration Date)

The subcommittee discussed the issue during their last teleconference. Based on the progress made by Area 3, and the fact that IRS Chief Counsel will not allow IRS to extend the authorization past one year, the subcommittee recommends the issue be placed in a “dropped” status. 
DECISION: The full committee agreed to “drop” issue # 4376. 

The subcommittee will review the basic research on issues #4406 and #4495.  One of these issues will be chosen as the subcommittee’s active issue.       

IRS Services Subcommittee Report

• Issue #4227 (Toll-Free Service – Request to Speak with a Supervisor)

The subcommittee drafted a Joint Committee referral for issue #4227.  The issue is now ready for proofreading by the Area 6 quality review team. 

In the past, one member from each Area 6 subcommittee served on the Area 6 quality review team.  This team was formed to review Joint Committee referrals before they’re submitted to the full Area 6 membership for approval. 

The full committee decided that Judi and Laura will review the draft referral and submit their recommended edits to the subcommittee.  The subcommittee will discuss the results at their April meeting and have the final draft ready for approval at the face-to-face meeting in Salt Lake City.
ACTION: Judi will review the draft and submit her edits to Laura. 

Miscellaneous Subcommittee Report

• Issue #4358 (Fraud – Preparers Reporting Other Preparers or Taxpayers)

Issue # 4358 focuses on the following question:  If a taxpayer is “shopping around” for a larger (although not necessarily correct) refund, how can the ethical preparer get the return flagged by IRS without cancelling return preparation appointments to fill out a paper form 3949-A (Informant Referral) and mail it in? 

The subcommittee understands how busy preparers are during the filing season, often taking back-to-back appointments.  They questioned if Form 3949-A could be submitted online. The preparer, already sitting at a computer, would most likely have the taxpayer’s name and tax identification number. An online Form 3949-A would make it easier for a busy preparer to report possible fraudulent activity. Dave is researching the possibility of submitting Form 3949-A electronically.

Joint Committee Business
Milissa attended the Joint Committee meeting in Joe’s place.  She noted that there were no issues for the Joint Committee to review.  Instead, the Joint Committee discussed the details of their upcoming face-to-face meeting.

Face-to-Face Meeting Agenda
The members reviewed and discussed the Area 6 face-to-face meeting agenda for May 1-3, 2008. Judi explained that there is time set aside on Saturday’s agenda to have an open discussion. If there are no topics raised during the open discussion, the meeting may end earlier than expected.   

Closing
Teresa closed the meeting.