Rep. Kelly Leads 100+ Colleagues in Bipartisan, Bicameral Call for IRS to Address Ongoing Concerns and Processing Delays

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Reps. Mike Kelly (R-PA-16), Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.-07), Brian Higgins (D-N.Y.-26), Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.-12), Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif.-20), and U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-La.), members of the Senate Finance Committee that oversees the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), led a bipartisan and bicameral group of 100 colleagues in a letter that reiterates ongoing concerns and urges the IRS to provide much needed relief as the agency struggles to address customer service and processing issues. The IRS’s lack of action is causing unnecessary confusion, as the current tax filing season is underway.

“We remain concerned that the IRS does not have a comprehensive plan to remedy the numerous problems affecting taxpayers, despite the fact that this filing season is already well underway,” wrote the lawmakers to IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig. “For example, there is continued confusion about which notices may be unilaterally suspended by the IRS, beyond the notices the IRS has already suspended, among other issues.”

In the letter, the lawmakers requested the IRS to specifically address which notices are statutorily required to be issued within a specific time, and why there are still certain notices that have not yet been suspended.

This letter is supported by the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants (AICPA), Padgett Business Services, National Association of Enrolled Agents (NAEA), National Association of Tax Professionals (NATP), National Society of Accountants (NSA), National Conference of CPA Practitioners (NCCPAP), National Association of Black Accountants, Inc. (NABA), Latino Tax Pro, Diverse Organization of Firms Advocacy Committee , National Society of Black Certified Public Accountants (NSBCPA), Prosperity Now, and National Society of Tax Professionals (NSTP).

“Since the beginning of tax season, the AICPA, Members of Congress, and various organizations representing taxpayers and practitioners have urged the IRS to take significant and meaningful steps to mitigate the anticipated challenges of this tax season. The AICPA is grateful to Senators Menendez and Cassidy, along with Representatives Panetta, Spanberger, Higgins, Bilirakis, and Kelly, for their persistent efforts to get taxpayers essential relief as we approach the March 15th filing deadline,” said AICPA President & CEO, Barry Melancon, CPA, CGMA.

For years, Rep. Kelly -- Ranking Member of the Ways & Means Select Revenue Measures Subcommittee, which oversees tax policy -- has been leading the effort in the U.S. House to protect taxpayers and ensure the IRS is serving the interests of the American people. Notably, in 2018, the House passed a series of legislation reforming the IRS, including a bill Kelly introduced that would change IRS policy to require all non-profit charitable giving organizations to electronically file their 990 forms — the forms used annually by tax-exempt organizations — and require the IRS to make these electronic filings available to the public in machine-readable format.

For years, Kelly has fought against cuts within the IRS that diverting funding from traditional customer service programs.


Full text of the letter can be found HERE and below.

Dear Commissioner Rettig,

We appreciate the Internal Revenue Service (IRS)’s ongoing efforts to eliminate the unprecedented backlog at the IRS. We remain concerned that the IRS does not have a comprehensive plan to remedy the numerous problems affecting taxpayers, despite the fact that this filing season is already well underway. For example, there is continued confusion about which notices may be unilaterally suspended by the IRS, beyond the notices the IRS has already suspended, among other issues.

Given that the IRS has not provided us with any additional information since your last correspondence dated February 8, 2022, we ask for responses to the following questions, no later than the close of business on Monday, March 14, 2022:

Which remaining unsuspended notices does the IRS have the authority to suspend? Please explain why the IRS has left these remaining notices unsuspended.
 

Is the IRS in the process of working to suspend additional notices? If so, when will that work be completed?
 

Which notices are statutorily required to be issued within a specific time? Would the IRS suspend these statutory notices if the IRS had the legal authority to do so?
 

Explain why the IRS has not suspended notice CP2000, Notice of Underreported Income? 
 

Notwithstanding the publication of Notice 2021-39, widespread controversy surrounding Schedules K-2 and K-3 remains, including recent additional instructions, the inability to electronically file, and lingering uncertainty surrounding many requirements. As such, is the IRS contemplating relief, such as delaying implementation to 2023?
 

In early February, the IRS advised Congress that it was considering a systemic process to identify pending penalty abatement requests, and likewise evaluating penalty relief options. Has the IRS determined if it can provide penalty relief for taxpayers as previously offered by the IRS for the 2020 and 2021 tax year? If not, why not?
 

Thank you for your continued attention to this important matter.

Sincerely,