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Open Recommendations (200 total)

Tax Cuts and Jobs Act: Considerable Progress Made Implementing Business Provisions, but IRS Faces Administrative and Compliance Challenges

GAO-20-103
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Internal Revenue Service The Commissioner of Internal Revenue should develop a process to accurately and thoroughly capture implementation status of ongoing projects in accordance with Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government. (Recommendation 2)
Open
As of July 2023, we have requested additional information from IRS on what actions, if any, IRS has taken to implement this recommendation; for example, whether IRS has taken actions in implementing other legislation (e.g., Inflation Reduction Act) that would fulfill this recommendation. In past updates, IRS continued to disagree with this recommendation and does not plan to take action on it. IRS officials acknowledged inconsistencies in reports but said these inconsistencies were not detrimental to overall implementation. We maintain that accurately and thoroughly capturing implementation status on ongoing projects would provide accurate information to decision makers and could prevent potential misreporting, mismanagement, or inefficient resource investment in the future.

Management Report: Improvements Needed in IRS's Financial Reporting and Information System Controls

GAO-23-106401
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Internal Revenue Service The Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service should review and update IRS's process to provide reasonable assurance that tax examiners comply with the requirement to address and correct error codes 004 and 230. (Recommendation 2)
Open
In its written comments on a draft of our report, IRS stated that it agreed with this recommendation and that it had addressed the recommendation by issuing a Servicewide Electronic Research Program Alert. This alert reminded Error Resolution System Unit tax examiners to correct all coding and transcription errors in displayed record fields, including error codes 004 and 230. However, the alert does not sufficiently address the process for monitoring tax examiners to provide reasonable assurance that tax examiners will comply with the requirement. Until IRS addresses the recommendation, an increased risk of processing and disbursing erroneous refunds exists. We will continue to monitor IRS's actions to address this recommendation.

Tax Debt Collection: IRS Needs to Define Field Program Objectives and Assess Risks in Case Selection

GAO-16-787
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Internal Revenue Service To ensure that Field Collection program case selection processes support IRS's and the Collection program's mission, including applying tax laws with integrity and fairness to all, the Commissioner of Internal Revenue should develop, document, and implement performance measures clearly linked to the Field Collection program and case selection objectives.
Open – Partially Addressed
IRS agreed with the recommendation and outlined planned actions to address it. In October 2022, IRS provided documented objectives that officials said were finalized that included clear links between performance measures and objectives. For example, IRS linked a percentage measure of open cases that are high priority to objectives on fairness and case selection. However, it was not clear that IRS had implemented the performance measures by formally approving and communicating them, along with any target goals for the measures. Also it was not clear that IRS had formally adopted the objectives and communicated them. We will update the status of IRS's implementation of the recommendation after we complete review of any documents IRS provides on further actions taken, as we requested in November 2022.

Taxpayer Service: IRS Could Improve the Taxpayer Experience by Using Better Service Performance Measures

GAO-20-656
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Internal Revenue Service The Commissioner of Internal Revenue should ensure that taxpayer experience measures reflect the highest-impact taxpayer journeys and key transactions, as consistent with OMB guidance. (Recommendation 4)
Open
IRS agreed with this recommendation. In its January 2021 report, IRS identified 140 capabilities intended to cover all phases of the taxpayer journey, as defined in OMB guidance. IRS said it planned to establish a baseline analytical framework by the end of calendar year 2021 that uses IRS data and federal, state, and publicly available data to understand the highest-impact taxpayer journeys and key transactions. IRS initially said it planned to implement our recommendation by January 2022. As of January 2023, IRS officials described steps underway to map taxpayer journeys. IRS provided documentation in October 2023, and met with GAO in December 2023, to describe efforts underway or planned to develop high priority and high impact taxpayer journey maps during fiscal year 2024. IRS officials said that delays in staffing the Taxpayer Experience Office delayed progress on actions to implement this recommendation. Although IRS documents included some journey maps, their related measures and basis for being designated high-impact or reflecting key transactions was unclear. Implementation of this recommendation depends on completion of the earlier recommendations on IRS's taxpayer experience measures. We will update this status after we complete review of any IRS documentation on specific actions taken or planned to clarify the measures and basis for the journey maps, as we requested that IRS provide in February 2024.

Security of Taxpayer Information: IRS Needs to Address Critical Safeguard Weaknesses

GAO-23-105395
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Internal Revenue Service The Commissioner for Internal Revenue should ensure that the Human Capital Office monitor contractor training completion rates for courses related to protecting taxpayer information and take actions to ensure contractors complete training, such as sharing completion rates with contracting officer representatives (COR) and other appropriate offices. (Recommendation 3)
Open
IRS agreed with this recommendation and as of March 2024, reported the agency had implemented it by monitoring contractor training completions throughout the 2023 Mandatory Briefings cycle. The agency reported this included sharing weekly training completion rate with business unit points of contact and with Contracting Officer Representatives. IRS also plans to issue quarterly reports on training completion rates. We are requesting documentation of this and will review it to determine the extent to which it addresses our recommendation. Implementing this recommendation will let IRS know when contractors are not meeting their training requirements, so it can take appropriate action to help ensure they complete the briefings. This, in turn, will help ensure contractors are equipped with the knowledge and skills to properly handle taxpayer information.

Employment-Related Identity Fraud: Improved Collaboration and Other Actions Would Help IRS and SSA Address Risks

GAO-20-492
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Internal Revenue Service The Commissioner of Internal Revenue should modify the title of IRS's employment-related identity theft action code 525 to reflect the type of employment-related identity fraud encompassed by this action code. (Recommendation 1)
Open – Partially Addressed
IRS initially neither agreed nor disagreed with GAO's May 2020 recommendation but in September 2020 partially agreed with it. In October 2020 IRS updated an internal policy document to change the definition of the indicator, but as of January 2024, IRS did not plan to change the title of the indicator. Our analysis of SSNs at risk of employment-related identify fraud indicates that the count of cases that IRS identifies under Action Code 525 likely understates the universe of employment-related identity fraud. By modifying the title of its employment-related IDT action code to more accurately reflect the data covered by the code, IRS could ensure that the agency is appropriately conveying the risk this specific type of employment-related identity fraud poses both to victims and tax administration without suggesting its statistics cover other types of employment-related identity fraud.

Taxpayer Information: IRS Needs to Improve Oversight of Third-Party Cybersecurity Practices

GAO-19-340
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Internal Revenue Service The Commissioner of Internal Revenue should update IRS's monitoring programs for electronic return originators to include techniques to monitor basic information security and cybersecurity issues. Further, IRS should make the appropriate revisions to internal guidance, job aids, and staff training, as necessary. (Recommendation 5)
Open
In its initial response to our draft report, IRS disagreed with this recommendation. In November 2019, IRS stated it was in agreement with the intent of this recommendation; however, it does not plan to implement it. IRS reported it does not have the statutory authority to establish policy on information security and cybersecurity issues, nor to enforce compliance if noncompliance is observed. Additionally, IRS said that the specialized technical skills required to monitor compliance with information and cybersecurity standards, should statutory authority be granted, would require additional funding to meet those monitoring needs. However, as we reported, IRS already monitors physical aspects of information security, which goes beyond existing Authorized e-file Provider program requirements. Since most individuals now file tax returns electronically, having checks for physical security without comparable checks for cybersecurity does not address current risks, as cyber criminals and fraudsters are increasingly attacking third-party providers, as IRS has noted. We believe that incorporating some basic cybersecurity monitoring into the visits would provide IRS the opportunity to help inform the most vulnerable third-party providers of additional guidance and resources. As of February 2024, there are no additional status updates.

Tax Filing: 2021 Performance Underscores Need for IRS to Address Persistent Challenges

GAO-22-104938
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Internal Revenue Service The Commissioner of Internal Revenue should direct responsible IRS business units to regularly identify, monitor, and report on the primary reasons for individual and business-related refund interest payments and associated dollar amounts, and report this information, as appropriate, to IRS leadership, Treasury, and Congress. (Recommendation 2)
Open
IRS disagreed with tracking and reporting why it pays interest. As of February 2023, IRS maintains its position that interest is prescribed by statute, and it does not consider interest paid a reliable or meaningful business measure. GAO maintains that interest payments are an expense to the U.S. government, and monitoring them could help IRS and Congress know how, if at all, the expense could be reduced.

2023 Tax Filing: IRS Improved Customer Service, but Could Further Improve Processing and Evaluate Expedited Hiring

GAO-24-106581
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Internal Revenue Service The Commissioner of Internal Revenue should evaluate and determine the cause of certain returns not meeting processing time goals and develop a plan for addressing these processing shortfalls. (Recommendation 1)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

IRS Website: Long-Term Strategy Needed to Improve Interactive Services

GAO-13-435
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Internal Revenue Service The Acting Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service should direct appropriate officials to develop a long-term strategy to improve web services provided to taxpayers, in accordance with Howto.gov and other federal guidance outlined in our report. To accomplish this, the IRS should establish a numerical or other measureable goal to improve taxpayer satisfaction and a timeframe for achieving it.
Open
IRS has made progress in improving its online services strategy, as we recommended, but as of March 2024, IRS has not yet completed its efforts. IRS's Office of Online Services reported that it is working to establish a plan to develop a suite of customer satisfaction metrics, goals for those metrics and a regular reporting structure. According to officials, IRS will track measures such as satisfaction, trust, effectiveness, ease and efficiency, to align with the Office of Management and Budget's A-11 requirements. IRS plans to establish a baseline for these measures in April 2024, which will inform goal setting going forward for annual targets and interim targets. IRS plans to set the annual targets by June 2024. IRS plans to define a reporting structure to communicate progress toward these satisfaction metrics beginning with data for the third quarter of 2024. We will continue to monitor IRS's efforts related to this recommendation. Setting targets and timeframes for achieving the goals will help IRS determine if its long-term satisfaction plans are successful.
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