In another move to reform the Internal Revenue Service and its practices, the Senate on Monday passed the Internal Revenue Service Math and Taxpayer Help Act (H.R. 998), which requires the IRS to provide taxpayers with details on notices related to a math or clerical error as well as proposing much-needed reforms.
Other changes in the bill require that the IRS send a notice related to an abatement of taxes assessed due to a math or clerical error; provide procedures for requesting such an abatement; and that the agency implement a pilot program for sending notices of a math or clerical error.
The bill, which the House approved earlier this year, now goes to the president to be signed into law.
The bill requires that an IRS notice about a math or clerical error include:
- A clear description of the error, including the type of error and the specific federal tax return line on which the error was made;
- An itemized computation of adjustments required to correct the error;
- The telephone number for the automated transcript service; and
- The deadline for requesting an abatement of any tax assessed due to the error.
The IRS also must send a notice related to an abatement of tax assessed due to a math or clerical error that clearly describes the abatement and includes an itemized computation of adjustments to be made to the items described in the notice of the error.
This bill also requires the IRS to:
- Provide procedures for requesting in writing, electronically, by phone, or in person an abatement of tax assessed due to a math or clerical error;
- Implement a pilot program to send notices of a math or clerical error by certified or registered mail; and
- Report certain information about the pilot program to Congress.
Historically, taxpayers have expressed concern that the IRS compliance and enforcement tactics have not been taxpayer-friendly. This reform requires the the IRS to clearly explain the issues, provide a fair opportunity to request abatement of simple math or clerical errors and reform practices that taxpayers found difficult to understand and remediate.
