Accessibility Skip to Top Navigation Skip to Main Content Home  |  Change Text Size  |  Contact IRS  |  About IRS  |  Site Map  |  Español  |  Help  

Part 13. Taxpayer Advocate Service

Chapter 4. TAS TAMIS Guide

Section 9. TAMIS Portal

13.4.9  TAMIS Portal

13.4.9.1  (03-30-2005)
Introduction to TAMIS Portal

  1. The TAMIS portal is a specialized web-based extension of the Taxpayer Advocate Management Information System. Access to the TAMIS portal provides TAS and non-TAS employees the ability to compile information from TAMIS, the TAS case database.

    Example:

    Wage and Investment OAR Liaisons have access to the TAMIS Portal. They access the W&I OAR reports, developed by TAS, which provide information on OAR records that have either been worked and closed or are currently being worked.

  2. The portal provides great flexibility for gathering and disseminating information. As an information tool, users can be linked to TAMIS and other data sources to facilitate a wide variety of work processes. For example, specialized reports might include data for inventory management, data used to write the Report to Congress, information useful to Technical Advisors, or Combinations of TAMIS data linked to other data sources such as SERP. TAMIS Portal users do not need a login to TAMIS.

  3. The portal contains specialized access areas consisting of libraries, channels, and folders. User permissions are set to allow or limit access to information based on employee needs. Portal content is then assigned attributes that allow or restrict access based on assigned workgroups. This protects the confidentiality of the taxpayer information both from non-TAS queries and between TAS specialized areas.

  4. The portal also contains standardized and on-demand reports, which may be accessed and generated as a web service. No special software is needed on a user's PC.

  5. Definitions which might be helpful;

    1. User is defined as anyone who has access to the TAMIS Portal.

    2. A workgroup is a logical grouping of users with common access to one or more specialized reports.

    3. A designer is anyone who has Eureka Designer Software installed on his/her PC.

    4. A publisher is a designer with publishing rights/permissions to the TAMIS Portal.

13.4.9.2  (03-30-2005)
Portal Administration

  1. The Director of Program Planning and Quality (PPQ) will appoint a portal administrator (PA). The PA will have administrative oversight over all portal activity.

  2. Each Area Director will appoint two administrators - a primary and a back up.

  3. Each Area Administrator and/or Eureka coordinator will be responsible for holding discussions with the Area Director. These discussions will focus on establishing Area polices and procedures for their library, including the development of an approval process requisite for all materials published to their library.

  4. The Area Administrator (AA) will manage users and publish approved materials to the portal.

  5. Each Operating Division (OD) granted access to the portal will be required to appoint an administrator who will function in the same capacity as the TAS area administrators except they will not be given permission to publish to the portal.

    1. The permission to publish reports for non-TAS users is granted only to the National Office (NO) Administrator.

    2. The OD administrator will only have administrative rights to reports specific to his/her OD.

    3. The OD administrator will determine which employees in the OD will require access to the portal and what restrictions should be placed on them.

  6. Ultimately, area and national directors have oversight-responsibility for the contents of their specific site.

13.4.9.3  (03-30-2005)
Portal Content

  1. There are various libraries contained within the TAMIS Portal including:

    All TAS Library Accessible by all TAS employees.
    TAS Area Libraries Access limited to employees of the specific Area.
    OD Libraries Limited to select employees of the Operating Division.
    Other Specific Use Libraries To be established as deemed necessary.

  2. Eureka Reports - Eureka is report-writing software used to create customized reports through linkages to TAMIS and other data sources.

  3. Naming conventions - Formerly, TAS had thousands of reports written in Intelligent Query (IQ)/Visual Query (VQ) on the former TAMIS. To keep the reports organized, a naming convention was established that provided organization and identity to the reports. The TAMIS Portal environment allows TAS to organize its reports in specific libraries by type of report (e.g.,receipts, closures, etc.) and with report descriptions. Due to these improved organizational capabilities the need to retain the old naming conventions is no longer necessary.

    1. The new naming convention will be a short descriptive title, which will provide users with a general idea of the report's output.

    2. Each report now has a "properties" area that can be accessed to identify the report creator, the type of report, and its function (i.e., report description).

    3. All reports published to the TAMIS portal will have the properties description completed.

  4. Non-TAMIS Materials

  5. Links to other TAS intranet sites. The TAMIS portal may contain links to information outside of the portal (e.g., links to TAMIS Tips, IRM 13.1, etc.), which will comply with IRS Standards for Web Design (see Intranet Policies and Standards at IRS Intranet Management - Policies).

13.4.9.3.1  (03-30-2005)
Library Structure

  1. Libraries are structured to allow local and nationwide access to reports and data.

  2. Folders and subfolders organize libraries just as manila folders organize paper documents.

  3. Channels are created by and used to manage content by the Area Administrator. They provide access to related information across libraries and workgroups when needed for specific related users.

  4. Each TAS area will establish workgroups and folders within the area library and shall establish permissions associated with them as needed.

    1. All users will have access to reports that are designed to meet the needs of his or her assigned workgroup.

    2. Workgroups will be established using a hierarchal viewing structure. Workgroup members will be able to view their reports as well as those of subordinate workgroups.

    3. Area Directors will have permission to view all reports published or linked, within their areas.

    4. Area libraries function in much the same way as workgroups. Content published within one library will generally not be visible to users assigned to other libraries. For example, Area 4 users could access Area 4 libraries but would not have access to the Area 2 library.

  5. The "All TAS" library will contain information available to all TAS employees.

  6. Specialized Area folders and channels will also be available as needed and will contain information related to the needs of those specific offices.

  7. Operating Divisions will also have specialized libraries where OD employees can access reports and other information regarding Operations Assistance Requests (OARs) as required by the service level agreements (SLAs).

13.4.9.4  (03-30-2005)
TAMIS Portal Access

  1. All TAS employees will be given access to the TAMIS portal.

  2. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) and Communication and Liaison (C&L) may also have limited access as needed, but will be controlled at TAS HQ under the direction of the National Taxpayer Advocate (NTA), Deputy National Taxpayer Advocate (DNTA), or Director of Communications and Liaison.

  3. Operating Divisions will be given access to the TAMIS portal as deemed necessary by National Office and will be subject to all protocols contained in this document.

  4. Twice a year the Area Administrators will provide workgroup membership listings to the Area Director for managerial reviews. Area Directors will ensure that TAMIS Portal users have an appropriate level of access.

13.4.9.5  (03-30-2005)
Security and Confidentiality

  1. All users will be required to have a login and password.

  2. All users are subject to the rules consistent with UNAX and other privacy statements established by the IRS to protect taxpayer sensitive information.

  3. The Area administrators and individuals with full portal administration rights will reset passwords as needed.

  4. OD employees will only be allowed to access reports specific to their division at the OD Area Administrator's discretion.

  5. Area administrators will be in charge of security and confidentiality for the libraries over which they have oversight of.

  6. Reports for other business units will be designed at a national level as a joint effort to ensure that they are in concert with the needs of both TAS and the ODs. The reports may be prescheduled to generate automatically or to run upon demand. The ODs will have the ability to compile and view their own reports as needed.

  7. The option exists within the portal to have the system E-Mail a password to a user in the event the password is forgotten. Since the TAMIS portal cannot encrypt the E-Mail this option has been de-activated.

13.4.9.6  (03-30-2005)
Report Approval Process

  1. An "All TAS" library team will be created and consist of one publisher from each area and a National Office coordinator. This group will evaluate all reports submitted for national use to ensure data accuracy and functionality. As a team, they will recommend reports for the " All TAS" library or suggest other appropriate placement within the TAMIS Portal. The team will also serve in an advisory capacity for issues relating to new nationwide libraries, channels, or specialized workgroups.

  2. Prior to publishing content to the TAMIS portal, those individuals with publishing rights must first submit the report (or other information) through the appropriate oversight process.

    1. NTA, DNTA, or National Office Directors will determine content of the "All TAS" library.

    2. Area Administrators will have approval responsibilities within their respective area. Each area will establish a team similar to the "All TAS " library team to function in a manner similar to the " All TAS" library team for area reviews.

    3. Area administrators will approve any TAMIS or non-TAMIS related information in their areas' libraries.

    4. Only materials approved by either the Area Administrator or Area Director will be published within Area libraries.

    5. Reports that are designed outside of a particular area must be submitted and approved for use by the "All TAS" approval process prior to publishing or linking within a second area.

    6. Links to sites outside the portal can be established with Area Administrator approval. For example, a link to the TAS portal can be created within the TAMIS portal to allow the user to easily move between these two sources of information. Links to a password protected site will still require the user to enter their password for that system. Administrators should generally avoid linking to a password-protected site.

    7. The "All TAS" library team will approve all content to the "All TAS" library and all content that spans two or more other area libraries. This process will consist of:

      • Obtaining approved Eureka reports for publication by the TAMIS Portal Technical Review Team.

      • Reviewing approved reports to determine appropriateness and access permissions.

      • Approval and publication of non-TAMIS materials, which will be available through hot links.

    8. Area Administrators and the "All TAS" library team will ensure that reports are shared with NTEU and (PPQ) prior to publication, in accord with all management and bargaining unit contractual agreements.

13.4.9.7  (03-30-2005)
Introduction to Publishing to the Portal

  1. Only the Portal Administrator and Area Administrators will perform the publication of reports and other materials to the TAMIS Portal.

  2. Only TAS National Office Area Administrator(s) who create reports for non-TAS organizations will publish to outside libraries.

  3. Output styles

    1. Eureka Designer software and the TAMIS report server support the following formats:

      • HTML

      • CSV (Readable by Excel)

      • TEXT

    2. HTML will be the primary output style for published reports. CSV and TEXT will be used on a limited basis where that style of output is more conducive to the needs of the intended users.

  4. Training materials will be provided to Eureka designers and Area Administrators regarding how to construct reports in accordance with the requirements of the various output styles.

13.4.9.7.1  (03-30-2005)
Scheduling Reports

  1. The TAMIS report server contains a report scheduler. Publishing prescheduled reports is generally the most efficient way to provide data to workgroups that routinely seek the same information. However, area publishers should discuss the needs and usage of this feature with the portal administrator prior to scheduling to ensure coordinated usage of system resources.

    1. Prescheduled reports will automatically compile and post to a chosen library/folder with workgroup viewing permissions in place.

    2. When using this feature, publishers should set the scheduler to overwrite the previous report.

  2. Bursting refers to a technique where one report is output to multiple files. This is commonly used when various work segments need to view a similar report but only for that data which applies to the specific unit. Report bursting could automatically generate a series of reports by organization code or another stratification. While this type of output might be an efficient way to update multiple reports, area publishers are required to consult with the " All TAS" library team and the portal administrator to avoid system resource complications.

  3. Scheduling Timed Reports

    1. The outputs from scheduled reports will be generated to libraries established by the administrator.

    2. The PA or AA will restrict access to these reports as appropriate.

  4. Publishers can only schedule timed reports with the approval of the Area Administrator.

  5. Administrators will be responsible for approving and monitoring the frequency of scheduled reports to ensure the system is not over burdened by large numbers of scheduled reports.

  6. There will be limited use of timed reports during normal business hours.

    1. In general, prescheduled reports will be limited to run times during non-business hours.

    2. For purposes of this section, non-business hours are defined as 7:00 p.m. through 5:00 a.m. Eastern time.

    3. Particular care should be taken to avoid scheduling reports to run at times when the System Administrators have planned data base backups. TAMIS backups are run on Mondays between midnight and 5:00 a.m. Eastern time.

    4. Scheduled reports will be coordinated between areas including:

    • The 8 distinct geographic TAS Areas

    • Systemic Advocacy

    • Headquarters

  7. Since it may be advantageous to create one over-all scheduled report that bursts into various elements, the PA in conjunction with the Procedures Team will ensure that bursting reports are developed to address the needs of all offices.

13.4.9.7.2  (03-30-2005)
Portal Maintenance

  1. Metadata Files - All Eureka reports published loaded on the report server contain a copy of the metadata file used when the report was created.

  2. Each publisher will be required to update published reports as metadata files change and as the reports require modification.

  3. The latest version of the metadata files will be housed on the portal and available for downloading to designer PCs. The PA will continue to email new metadata files to the cadre of publishers.

  4. Report Removal

    1. The portal administrator will make available a quarterly report showing the number of hits on a report and provide the information to the Area Administrators.

    2. Each on demand report published to the portal will be systemically assigned an object code.

      • This object code must be identified with the on demand report. The code is not intuitively descriptive.

      • Area Administrators will provide the object codes contained in their libraries to the PA to facilitate identification of the individual reports.

      • The PA can then generate a report of hits to these on demand reports.

    3. Area Administrators will determine what should be removed from their libraries. Prior to removal, Area Administrators will provide their users with a 30-day notice of the impending action.

    4. Limited-use reports published to the portal will have reasonable expiration dates set by the Area Administrator of the specific library.

    5. The PA will remove any report not accessed within a year's time after giving reasonable notice to the report's creator.

13.4.9.8  (03-30-2005)
Problem & Issue Reporting and Tracking

  1. Problem reporting will be the responsibility of the Area Administrators. A process shall be developed for TAS to capture and accumulate reported problems. Accumulated reports will be submitted to MITS for periodic evaluation.

  2. The PA will maintain a log of problems and solutions that are found and post them to the portal along with any identified work-around.

  3. Reporting General Portal Problems

    1. Problems identified by users will be reported to the Area Administrator.

    2. As the Area Administrators become more proficient, they may be able to resolve reported problems on the spot without needing to contact the PA. Problems that cannot be resolved by the Area Administrator will be elevated to the PA.

    3. The process for elevating problems will be determined by the PA.

  4. Reporting Eureka Specific Problems

    1. Problems concerning the development and publication of Eureka procedures to the portal will be elevated to the PA through the designer's Area Administrator.

    2. A library of helpful hints will be created and maintained by the TAMIS Portal Procedures team to assist designers in the development or reports for publication to the portal.

  5. Capture of problem information and accessibility

    1. A library of reported problems captured by the PA will be made available to all affected portal users.

    2. Reported problems and solutions will be documented and housed in a specific library.

13.4.9.9  (03-30-2005)
TAMIS Portal Training

  1. TAMIS Portal Training - links to training materials developed for the three types of portal users defined as:

    1. General Users - anyone with access to the portal

    2. Publishers - anyone with designer rights to Eureka

    3. Administrators - anyone with administrative rights to the Portal


More Internal Revenue Manual