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September 27, 2017

TIGTA-2017-23
Karen Kraushaar, Director of Communications
Karen.Kraushaar@tigta.treas.gov
(202) 622-6500

J. Russell George Congratulates TIGTA on Service to America Medal

WASHINGTON -- At a gala reception in Washington's Mellon Auditorium on September 27, the nonprofit, nonpartisan Partnership for Public Service bestowed a prestigious 2017 Service to America Medal on the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.

TIGTA was selected for the honor from a field of four finalists for the Service to America Medal in the category of Homeland Security and Law Enforcement. There were a total of 450 nominees for the Samuel J. Heyman Service to America medals program, which recognizes exceptional Federal employees who are "engaged in important work to strengthen the national defense, spur the economy, protect the environment, and advance the health, safety and welfare of Americans and others around the world." The so-called "Sammies" are the civil servant's version of the Oscars and are put on by the Partnership for Public Service. Each year the organization spotlights the winners of eight awards whose contributions to public service have helped improve Federal government.

TIGTA was honored for its investigative and public awareness efforts against the Internal Revenue Service impersonation scam, which has impacted over two million Americans and robbed over 11,000 victims of $60 million since it began in October 2013.

J. Russell George, Inspector General, thanked the awards committee and Partnership for Public Service officials for bestowing the honor, which acknowledged Timothy P. Camus, Deputy Inspector General for Investigations, and the IRS impersonation scam team, in the Homeland Security and Law Enforcement category. Camus and team won recognition for a "multiagency investigation and public awareness campaign to stop a massive fraud that conned thousands of Americans into paying millions of dollars in bogus tax bills."

The Inspector General remarked that the award was well deserved by Tim and the hundreds of employees who have worked tirelessly to attack the IRS impersonation scam since its beginning in October 2013. "While TIGTA may be limited in resources, the professionalism of its workforce knows no bounds," he said. "And our work continues," he added, noting the agency's active engagement with its Federal partners and with the public to stop the scam, including ongoing investigations and additional public awareness work.

"Since the scam began, it has robbed Americans of over $60 million of their hard-earned money," the Inspector General said. "Thanks to our massive investigative efforts and excellent collaboration with our law enforcement partners, we have charged more than 90 people for their criminal activity involving the scam, and we will not rest until we have stopped these scammers cold in their tracks," he said.

"We are most honored that the Partnership has recognized our efforts with this prestigious award, and we are even more grateful for the opportunity it provides us to warn the public to just hang up on these callers. The IRS will not call you out of the blue and demand immediate payment to pay taxes. If anyone calls you and tries to threaten you into paying taxes to prevent a lawsuit, arrest or deportation, just hang up."