IRS program to assist poor taxpayers rarely picks up the phone

Local offices for an IRS program that provides free assistance to taxpayers who are experiencing a financial hardship rarely pick up their phones, according to a report published July 30 by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. 

Investigators made test calls to all 76 Taxpayer Advocate Service offices across the country and only had their calls answered twice. Sixteen times the voicemail box was full, and the line was not in service on two occasions. The most frequent response was being sent to voicemail (56 times), but TIGTA noted that some of the voicemail messages contained outdated information or inconsistent time frames for when callers should expect a response. 

TIGTA offered three recommendations around TAS updating and monitoring telephone operations. TAS agreed to standardize the “leave a message” scripts. It also fixed the two local office numbers that were inaccurately listed, increased the number of voicemails it can store and employees now review voicemails daily to prioritize taxpayers with time-sensitive issues.  

“[W]e do not believe taxpayers will encounter situations where mailboxes are full and they get disconnected often, if at all,” wrote Elizabeth Blazey-Pennel, TAS executive director of case advocacy and intake and technical support, in a memorandum attached to the report. 

Program officials also argued that local offices only accounted for roughly one percent of the cases they received in the last year and that they need to balance limited staffing resources with other priorities. 

Still, TIGTA urged IRS to use some of the nearly $58 billion in funding it received from the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act to improve the TAS customer experience.

“Calling a TAS office for assistance to resolve a tax issue or to expedite receiving a refund due to a financial hardship and not being able to reach a representative or leave a message for a representative to call the taxpayer back places an undue burden on the taxpayer,” investigators wrote. 

Additionally, TAS makes recommendations to change IRS processes and procedures. TIGTA pointed out that the service’s 2024 annual report to Congress, ironically, criticized IRS’ phone customer service. 

“The National Taxpayer Advocate reported that the IRS struggled to balance employees between answering telephones and processing correspondence. The National Taxpayer Advocate also reported that while IRS service improved overall, taxpayers still struggled to get help,” investigators wrote. “Like the telephone service provided by the IRS, taxpayers who are attempting to contact local TAS offices will experience difficulties and frustration with their inability to timely obtain the assistance needed.”