Since its creation, the Taxpayer Advocacy Panel (TAP) has provided more than 2,039 recommendations to the IRS to improve taxpayer service and satisfaction with IRS services, products and procedures. These issues are derived from direct taxpayer feedback as well as projects the IRS asked the TAP to work.
Open issue, but no recommendations to the IRS have been made yet.
The issue has one or more recommendations that have been sent to the IRS.
One or more recommendations have been adopted and require monitoring, one or more recommendations have been considered but aren’t yet complete, or TAP is still reviewing the IRS’s response(s).
After reviewing the IRS response, TAP has submitted a rebuttal of the IRS position and requested reconsideration.
All recommendations under this issue have been closed.
After TAP submit recommendation(s), IRS program areas review the recommendation and implement it if appropriate and feasible. While the IRS gives serious consideration to TAP recommendations, it is sometimes limited in its ability to implement recommendations due to cost, legislative or regulatory restrictions, a difference in philosophy, or the need to balance relieving taxpayer burdens with their responsibility to efficiently collect proper tax revenues owed. Below are definitions various status of a Project referral
Each TAP recommendation has a status code per the IRS response. Below describes the disposition of the recommendation by the TAP.
Initial stage, approved by the joint committee, but pending a response by the IRS.
IRS indicates the recommendation is fully adopted. The recommendation may or may not be implemented, but the IRS has agreed to the recommendation.
IRS indicates the recommendation is partially accepted. The recommendation may or may not be implemented but the IRS has agreed to the recommendation in part.
IRS has either rejected the recommendation and will state the reasons in the response, or the IRS agrees with the recommendation, but cannot implement it at this time.
The IRS did not respond timely and TAP has decided not to pursue the recommendation further, or the issue was resolved prior to resolution of the recommendation.
For more detailed information about the internal procedures of the Taxpayer Advocacy Panel, you may view the Internal Revenue Manual section 13.7.1.