TIGTA: Process for complaints against preparers is too slow

The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration said in Rep’t No. 2014-40-056 that its audit indicated the IRS does not timely process complaints it receives against tax return preparers. Of 8,354 complaints the IRS received in 2012 and part of 2013, no work had yet been done on 47%, or 3,953, as of Sept. 11, 2013. Nearly half of those cases awaiting work were 60 or more days old, and a significant number had not been entered into the IRS’s case inventory until 34 to 64 days after their receipt. Moreover, the IRS lacks sufficient procedures to make sure its processing of complaints is accurate and consistent, TIGTA said. The IRS agreed to establish procedures to process complaints more timely, consistently, and accurately.