Fiscal Year 2017 Statutory Review of Restrictions on Directly Contacting Taxpayers

The Director, Field Collection, should ensure that the group managers appropriately report the cases TIGTA identified with potential I.R.C. Section 6304(a)(2) violations to the local Labor Relations Specialist.

The Director, Collection, Small Business/Self-Employed (SB/SE) Division, should update Internal Revenue Manual (IRM) procedures to: (1) ensure proper handling of situations in which a taxpayer clearly states that he or she wishes to consult with an authorized representative with emphasis that revenue officers should suspend an interview regardless of whether the taxpayer may have answered one or more questions; (2) provide clarification or interpretation on the up to 10 business days deadline policy for taxpayers to consult with representation; (3) provide clarification for situations in which a taxpayer's representative does not have power of attorney for all open tax periods and instruct the revenue officer on who to contact for an updated Form 2848; and (4) incorporate IRM revisions into all applicable technical communications for revenue officers.