News

The Taxpayer First Act (TFA) is reshaping the way the Internal Revenue Service interacts with communities, taxpayers and preparers. According to the Federal News Network, the focus of the TFA is to make the IRS more taxpayer friendly. At the center of that effort is improving the citizen experience (CX), overhauling the technology utilized by the agency and improving cyber security ₁.

Indeed, the IRS kicked off the new year in 2021 by creating a new Chief Taxpayer Experience Officer position taken on by Ken Corbin who, at the time, was the IRS Wage and Investment commissioner. Corbin expressed excitement at the time, citing his enthusiasm for assisting the IRS with earning the trust and respect of American taxpayers. “We want to help taxpayers and we will₂.”

Corbin’s position as Chief Taxpayer Experience Officer will see him working closely with business units and offices across the IRS. He will also coordinate with entities such as the National Taxpayer Advocate, an independent agency that assists taxpayers with issues that cannot be resolved by the IRS. Charged with monitoring the taxpayer experience, Corbin’s role will set the strategic directions for CX moving forward and identifying opportunities for making changes in real time that benefit taxpayers and the tax professional community.

To breakdown the implications of the TFA for the immediate and near future, the IRS will partner with the MICPA as well as several other organizations including the American Academy of Attorney-Certified Public Accountants, the Michigan Society of Enrolled Agents, the Michigan Chapter of the National Association of Tax Professionals and the Oakland County Bar Association in the upcoming conference, Tax Professionals and the IRS: Successfully Working Together.

Members interested in learning how legislation like the TFA, or American Rescue Plan Act, will impact their practice and their clients can register now for the course, scheduled for June 9 to have their questions answered by experts from the IRS.

1. Reagan, Larry. “How the Taxpayer First Act Could Reinvent the Taxpayer Experience…” Federal News Network. 4 Mar. 2021. Accessed on 27 May 2021.
2. “IRS Creates New Chief Taxpayer Experience Officer Position…” IRS Newsroom. 26 Jan. 2021. Accessed on 27 May 2021.