Accenture to revamp IRS site

The Internal Revenue Service has selected Accenture to redesign the IRS Web site, awarding a contract potentially worth $33.6 million.

The length of the contract is five years, with a base year of $5.7 million and four one-year options.

Qwest Communications International Inc. will assist Accenture and be responsible for hosting the site while Accenture will be the primary firm for consulting and revamping.

Greg Carson, director of Electronic Tax Administration modernization at the IRS, said in a recent interview that a redesign of the site was necessary because visitors "can't find anything on it.

"All the information you ever want to know is in there—it's just impossible to find," he said.

The IRS site includes several hundred thousand pages of text and graphics. The new site is expected to debut Jan. 1, in time for the 2002 tax season, but not before focus groups evaluate it.