Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen will unveil some of the Biden administration’s planned changes for the Internal Revenue Service, including efforts to dramatically bolster the capacity of in-person and call-in support services, during a speech Thursday at an IRS facility just outside Washington.
Congress approved $80 billion in new funding for the tax-collection agency in legislation passed in August, clearing the way for big upgrades in technology, taxpayer services and enforcement that would concentrate on the wealthy and corporations.
The new money will “transform the IRS into a 21st century agency,” Yellen said in excerpts from the speech released by the Treasury Department. “While all the improvements won’t be done overnight, taxpayers can expect to feel real differences during the next filing season.”
Yellen said the agency would in the coming filing season:
• Triple the number of taxpayers served at in-person support centers to more than 2.7 million.
• Raise the proportion of callers reaching an employee to 85% from 10-15%, while cutting average wait times in half, to less than 15 minutes.
• Automate the scanning of millions of individual paper returns, speeding refunds.
• Allow taxpayers to receive and respond to notices online.
Yellen said the IRS would hire 5,000 customer service representatives to enhance its telephone operations.
The IRS has promised to reduce a backlog of paper filings that reached historically high levels during the coronavirus pandemic. Dozens of congressional Republicans and Democrats have demanded the agency relieve the backlog and improve service.
Yellen also said the IRS would convene customer-service experts from the private sector to advise the agency on modernization efforts.
The Treasury chief is scheduled to deliver the speech after touring the IRS center in New Carrollton, Maryland.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.