Taxpayer Advocacy Panel

Minutes

Taxpayer Advocacy Panel (TAP)
Joint Committee Teleconference Minutes
Wednesday, August 6, 2008 2 p.m. ET

National Office Update
TAP Chair Report
Meeting With IRS Commissioner

Designated Federal Official
Shawn Collins, Acting TAP Director
Bernie Coston, Acting EDCA Director

Members Present
Hank Mosler, TAP Chair
MJ Lee, TAP Vice Chair
Shaun Barry, Chair, Area 1
Ben Chapman, Chair, Area 2
Dale Cooper, Chair, Area 3
Kenneth Wright, Chair, Area 5
Milissa Bensen, for Area 6
Charles Davidson, Chair, Area 7
Bruce Zgoda, Chair, Burden Reduction
John Verwiel, Chair, EITC
Lee Stieger, Chair, Notices
Stan Wernz, Chair, Area 4
Wayne Whitehead, Chair, TAC

Members Absent
Mark Paris, Chair, Communication
Al Rodriguez, Chair, Forms and Pubs
Rick Rousseau, Chair, VITA
Joe Shields, Chair, Area 6

Staff Present
Roy Block, TAP Manager
Nancy Ferree, TAP Manager
Louis Morizio, TAP Manager
Judi Nicholas, TAP Manager
Patti Robb, Note Taker
Steve Berkey, Senior Program Analyst
Susan Gilbert, Senior Program Analyst
Sallie Chavez, Program Analyst

Visitors
Howard Margulies, Area 1 Panel Member
Richard Coonradt, Area 7 Panel Member
Sandra Finestone, Area 7 Panel Member
Kimberly Brown, Area 2 Panel Member
Robert Yandow, Area 1 Panel Member

Welcome/Announcements/Review Agenda

Hank Mosler welcomed everyone and congratulated Bernie Coston on his detail to Executive Director Case Advocacy (EDCA). We are looking forward to working with acting TAP Director Shawn Collins. Collins was the Grants Administration Manager with Low Income Tax Clinics (LITC).

Roll Call

Quorum met.

National Office Report

See Attachment 1 for report. This report has also been posted to TAPSpace. One item to note is Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) will be auditing TAP. Coston asked that if anyone is asked for information, before entering into a dialog please contact the headquarters staff. They will make necessary provisions as needed. We did some preliminary research into this type of audit and found that TAP is the first committee within the IRS that has been identified. They are looking to make sure that all our operating procedures are in place – charter, recruitment, record keeping, staff oversight, travel, and if TAP is truly making a difference. There will be a pre-meeting with them and they will let us know what they are planning to look at. They will request written materials in advance.

TAP Chair Report

See Attachment 2 for full report. Mosler noted it is almost the end of the year so please redouble your efforts to complete issues in process. He asked that the issue chairs ensure their projects are identified correctly.

Commissioner Meeting Feedback

See Attachment 3 for full report. The meeting was very successful with Commissioner Shulman and National Taxpayer Advocate (NTA) Nina Olson. Mosler said he came away with the feeling that Shulman was already a supporter of TAP. Chapman felt it was a very valuable meeting and it will be important to follow-up on the Commissioner’s comments. Mosler said in the past, the Commissioner spoke at the TAP annual meeting. We invited him to our meeting in December and we need to make sure this gets on his calendar.
ACTION: Collins will ensure the TAP annual meeting gets on the commissioner calendar.

Review and Approve June 19-21, 2008, Face-to-Face Minutes

Minutes were approved by consensus.

Feedback from June 19-21, 2008, Face-to-Face Meeting

There were comments on the failure to control the agenda and some items ran too long.
Ken Wright will send out the feedback form after this meeting.

Recruiting Status

Coston met with Olson and she approved the list of names with minor modifications. Once the changes are made, it will be sent to Counsel for approval. It is moving much more quickly this year than last year.

Update of Location for October Face-to-Face Meeting

Estimates were completed for St. Louis, Kansas City, and Las Vegas. We will be having a discussion to make a final determination. The availability of flights will also be a determining factor. Mosler reminded everyone that there will be a full two days so please plan to participate fully.

Area Recommendations for Review and Elevation to IRS

#708-4367, Notification of State Licensing Requirements for Paid Preparers —Charles Davidson

Issue Statement: The IRS website does not indicate which states require paid tax preparers to be licensed and registered.
We want the following statement included in the “Tips for Choosing a Tax Preparer” letter found on IRS.gov; “As of 2008, California and Oregon are the only two states that regulate paid tax preparers.”
Consensus to elevate recommendation.

#708-4370 – Simplify Filing Requirement for Small Private Foundations – Charles Davidson

Issue Statement: Currently, all Private Foundations are required to file Form 990-PF, Return of Private Foundation, to report their exempt activities for the year. Form 990-PF captures a large amount of data on a variety of charitable activities. The complexity of this form results in a 32 percent error rate. In addition, small foundations require professional tax preparation support to meet the reporting requirements due to the complexity of Form 990-PF.
Consensus to elevate recommendation.

#308-4589 – Difficulty Contacting IRS Using CP-2000 Phone Number – Dale Cooper

Issue Statement: The toll-free number, 1-800-829-3009, that appears on Notice CP-2000 to “call for assistance,” requires the caller to listen to lengthy recordings on unrelated topics prior to being put on hold while waiting to speak to an IRS person.
This issue was presented during the June meeting and it was sent back for revisions as it had not been through the quality review process. We are recommending the IRS modify their menu options.
Consensus to elevate recommendation.

Proposal to use TAP Graduates as a Resource for Special Projects This came from a discussion during the June face-to-face meeting. Sometimes the committees could use some input from prior members on certain issues. There is a lot of knowledge out there just waiting to be tapped. We suggest contacting these people to see if they would be willing to be a resource. A database could be built so there is a readily available source. We would like to put out a quarterly newsletter to keep everyone up to date and let them know we may still contact them. Shawn Collins will take the written proposal to Angel Saumure, Treasury, to see if this is viable. TAP would not be able to reimburse them for travel however. MJ Lee suggested also asking them if they would be willing to complete in surveys. Mosler noted that we have tapped into prior members for input before and proposed that we make this request and not even talk about reimbursement.

ACTION: Shawn Collins will take this proposal to Angel Saumure for guidance and feedback. This will be put on the September agenda for discussion.

Area/Issue Committee Success Stories (e.g., Outreach, Special Events, Others)

Ken Wright has been teaching Cancellation of Debt at the TAS symposium and has received a very favorable response.

Public Input

No comments.

Closing

Hank Mosler is currently at the Orlando Tax Forum and he encouraged everyone who attends to make sure they walk around and do the TAP dance.

Meeting Adjourned

ACTION ITEMS

Director:

Collins will take the proposal to use prior TAP members for issue input to Angel Saumure, Treasury, for guidance and feedback. This will be put on the September agenda for discussion.
Collins will ensure the TAP annual meeting gets put on Commissioner Shulman’s calendar.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Consensus to elevate the following recommendations

#308-4589 – Difficulty Contacting IRS Using CP-2000 Phone Number
#708-4370 – Simplify Filing Requirement for Small Private Foundations
#708-4367, Notification of State Licensing Requirements for Paid Preparers