The Taxpayer Advocate Service Office of Systemic Advocacy Needs to Improve Program Oversight to Ensure Taxpayer Problems Are Effectively Identified and Resolved

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Date Issued

Wednesday, February 26, 2025

Submitting OIG

Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration

Agencies Reviewed/Investigated

Internal Revenue Service

Report Number

2025-300-006

Report Type

Audit

Agency Wide

Yes

Number of Recommendations

Questioned Costs

Funds for Better Use

Report updated under NDAA 5274

Open Recommendations

This report has 10 open recommendations.

Recommendation Number	Significant Recommendation	Recommended Questioned Costs	Recommended Funds for Better Use
1	No	$0	$0
The TAS, Executive Director, Systemic Advocacy, should ensure that collaborative teams have measurable outcomes to track program effectiveness.
2	No	$0	$0
The TAS, Executive Director, Systemic Advocacy, should develop and implement a quality review process for collaborative teams.
3	No	$0	$0
The TAS, Executive Director, Systemic Advocacy, should develop and implement a method to monitor collaborative teams through a dashboard view.
4	No	$0	$0
The TAS, Executive Director, Systemic Advocacy, should develop guidance to ensure consistent executive oversight for collaborative teams.
5	No	$0	$0
The TAS, Executive Director, Systemic Advocacy, should develop additional performance measures to assess whether systemic advocacy projects are effective in addressing systemic issues.
6	No	$0	$0
The TAS, Executive Director, Systemic Advocacy, should ensure that quality reviews are conducted on the 13 advocacy projects completed while the reviews were suspended. Additionally, ensure that if quality reviews are suspended in the future, that any projects whose reviews were not done due to the suspension, are completed when the quality review process restarts.
7	No	$0	$0
The TAS, Executive Director, Systemic Advocacy, should ensure that management addresses staffing issues and timely reassigns inventory when delays are identified in the SAMS issue review.
9	No	$0	$0
The TAS, Executive Director, Systemic Advocacy, should analyze trends in issues raised in SAMS to help ensure that emerging issues are identified and addressed before they become more widespread.
10	No	$0	$0
The TAS, Executive Director, Systemic Advocacy, should revise guidance to contain clear criteria for the SIRE project manager to identify emerging systemic issues submitted to SAMS, including developing a method to track and monitor.
11	No	$0	$0
The TAS, Executive Director, Systemic Advocacy, should develop a system to track and monitor systemic issues closed when additional monitoring is needed to ensure that the issue is addressed.