IRS Announces Taxpayer Advocacy Panel Members Selected for 2017; Recruits Members for 2018

 

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IR-2017-66, March 22, 2017

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service announced today the selection of 24 new members to serve on the nationwide Taxpayer Advocacy Panel. The TAP is a federal advisory committee charged with providing taxpayer suggestions to improve IRS customer service.

The new TAP members, recommended by the IRS and approved by the Department of the Treasury, will join 47 returning members to round out the panel of 71 volunteer members for 2017. The new members were selected from a pool of more than 900 interested individuals who applied during an open recruitment period last spring, as well as alternate members who applied in prior years.

The TAP listens to taxpayers at public forums they hold and through other taxpayer contacts, identifies problems and makes suggestions for improving IRS service and customer satisfaction. Oversight and program support for the TAP are provided by the Taxpayer Advocate Service, an independent organization within the IRS that helps resolve taxpayer problems and makes administrative and legislative recommendations to mitigate systemic problems.

“To meet the needs of the taxpaying public, it is critical that the IRS listen to taxpayers to hear what their needs and preferences are,” said Nina E. Olson, the National Taxpayer Advocate. “The citizen volunteers who serve on the TAP are, first and foremost, taxpayers who bring a taxpayer perspective to bear in advising on the IRS’s taxpayer service activities.”

TAP members work with IRS executives on a variety of topics with an emphasis on those involving individual taxpayers and the small business community.  Members also serve as a conduit for bringing grassroots concerns raised by the taxpaying public to the attention of the IRS.

TAP members are U.S. citizens who volunteer to serve a three-year appointment and are expected to devote 200 to 300 hours per year to panel activities. TAP members are demographically and geographically diverse, providing balanced representation from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. In addition, there is one TAP member from abroad who represents the interests of taxpayers working, living or doing business abroad or in a U.S. territory.

Taxpayers can contact the TAP representative for their geographic area by calling 888-912-1227 or at www.improveirs.org. Taxpayers can also send written correspondence to the TAP at the following address:

Taxpayer Advocacy Panel (TAP)
TA: TAP, Room 1509
1111 Constitution Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C.  20224

Individuals interested in volunteering to serve on the TAP for 2018 may submit an application at www.improveirs.org during the current recruiting period, open now through April 24.

A list of the new TAP members by location is included below.

Name

City

State

Richard

Herman

Fresno

Calif.

Loren

Medina

Orange

Calif.

Kristen

Petersen

Colorado Springs

Colo.

Dan

Smolnik

Brookfield

Conn.

Alice

Azzaro

Wellington

Fla.

James

Sowell

Panama City

Fla.

Angel

Hower

Norwalk

Iowa

Michelle

Brookens

Taylorville

Ill.

Kimberly

Mason

Chicago

Ill.

Tasheka

Dorsey

Darrow

La.

William

McGauley

Brockton

Mass.

Michele

Walker

Brownstown Township

Mich.

Millicent

Kasal

Saint Paul

Minn.

Joseph

Martin

Jefferson City

Mo.

David

Buchanan

Canton

Miss.

Allen

Straub

Omaha

Neb.

Mariely

Downey

Amherst

N.Y.

Heidi

Hirschfield

Brooklyn

N.Y.

Jimit

Shah

Bethpage

N.Y.

Alyssa

Burrows

Scranton

Pa.

Jacob

Torres

Toa Alta

Puerto Rico

Deborah

Oakes

Swarthmore

Pa.

Victor

Quillen

Kingsport

Tenn.

Kimberly

Pierre

Spring

Texas

Shirley

Atkinson-Samms

Salt Lake City

Utah

Joseph

Holley

Barboursvillle

W.Va.

 

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