Policy

Bipartisan group looks to push IRS towards simpler math error notices

The IRS MATH Act would require the tax agency to send more specific, straightforward notices when it corrects simple math errors on tax returns.

Artificial Intelligence

IRS commissioner indicates AI will play growing role in future tax collection

IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel opined about the agency’s current and future use of AI just days after Tax Day.

Digital Government

100,000 have used IRS Direct File to submit their tax returns

The agency has not yet determined whether the pilot program for the tool will be extended into a permanent offering.

Modernization

IRS has some of the oldest tech in government — it’s trying to change that

Agency leadership views the “historic funding” provided under the Inflation Reduction Act as an opportunity to get out from under the list of needed tech improvements that have long plagued the IRS.

Digital Government

IRS touts launch of Direct File pilot

The pilot, which allows eligible taxpayers to file directly with the IRS for free, marks a new free option from the IRS, which has for decades relied on private companies to field free options for Americans.

Digital Government

IRS Direct File to be fully available March 12

The tool is a new way for eligible taxpayers to file directly with the IRS online for free.

Digital Government

IRS opens up Direct File to the public

Interested taxpayers will have to watch the IRS website to see when the tool is open for new users.

Digital Government

IRS gears up to launch Direct File pilot

The pilot will only be available on a limited basis to certain taxpayers.

Digital Government

IRS launches push to clean up its communications

Simplification of notices sent to taxpayers is one of the tax agency’s lines of work under the Inflation Reduction Act.

Digital Government

IRS has ‘unconscionable delays’ in helping identity theft victims, taxpayer advocate says

The average wait time for taxpayers trying to resolve fraudulent returns, coupled with legitimate filers being mistakenly flagged as fraudulent, has become a top challenge for the IRS, according to a new report.

Digital Government

IRS direct file participants will have to use ID.me for identity verification

The agency still isn't ready to field the government-provided Login.gov for digital access to taxpayer services.

Acquisition

IRS starts the bidding for $1.9B IT services recompete

The tax collection agency is undertaking this recompete amid its broader push to overhaul the entire tech environment, which includes systems first stood up in the 1960s.

Breaking News People

IRS taps new CIO

The current acting CIO of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Rajiv Uppal, has been selected to take the top tech post post at the IRS — the latest in a series of leadership changes in the CIO shop at the tax agency in recent months.

Digital Government

IRS hits key digitization goal months ahead of schedule

Although Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen plugged progress in IRS efforts to tame paper in the agency, she also emphasized that “playing politics with IRS funding is unacceptable.”

Digital Government

IRS won't add Login.gov without changes

A watchdog report reveals what led the IRS to scrap plans to use the government-backed identity service during the 2023 tax season.

Digital Government

IRS watchdog questions taxpayer demand for direct file services

A recent oversight report questions whether taxpayers are actually as interested in a direct, government-run tax filing tool as the IRS claims.

Artificial Intelligence

AI is part of a 'new era' at IRS, commissioner says

The tax agency announced the expansion of work to use AI in how it goes after large partnerships.

Digital Government

IRS awards $2B electronic payment system contract

The tax collection agency wants to make it easier to make payments via debit and credit cards, plus make the websites more accessible and user-friendly.

Digital Government

IRS must speed up efforts to resolve IT security weaknesses across the agency, watchdog says

The IRS’s failure to expeditiously resolve weaknesses in its IT systems puts the agency “at risk for exploitation by threat actors,” according to an audit by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.