The Taxpayer Advocate Service Centralized Case Intake Program Needs Improvement to Provide Better Customer Service.

The National Taxpayer Advocate should develop and implement a staffing plan that will reduce the call wait times that taxpayers experience during peak call volume periods.

The National Taxpayer Advocate should develop and implement a process to prevent callers from being disconnected from the CCI program at the end of the day.

the Taxpayer Advocate should develop and implement a mandatory process whereby the TAS 1) records and summarizes specific reasons why calls received by intake advocates do not result in the creation of a TAS case and 2) provides formal feedback to the W&I Division on the frequency and reasons for inaccurate referrals made from the Wage and Investment (W&I) Division to the CCI program.

The Taxpayer Advocate should update Internal Revenue Manual 13.3 and provide up-to-date guidance to Wage and Investment (W&I) Division contact representatives who staff the NTA toll-free line pertaining to current procedures for the CCI program.

The National Taxpayer Advocate should develop and implement training for intake advocates on specific details that should be obtained from taxpayers and documented in case files in order to reduce rework needed by case advocates and better prepare taxpayers for further interactions with the TAS and other IRS business units as the taxpayer issue is resolved.