[Pages H1348-H1349]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE MATH AND TAXPAYER HELP ACT

Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
pass the bill (H.R. 998) to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to
require additional information on math and clerical error notices, as
amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:

H.R. 998

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Internal Revenue Service
Math and Taxpayer Help Act''.

SEC. 2. IMPROVEMENT OF NOTICES OF MATH OR CLERICAL ERROR.

(a) In General.--Section 6213(b)(1) of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986 is amended--
(1) by striking ``errors.--If the taxpayer'' and inserting
``errors.--
``(A) In general.--If the taxpayer'',
(2) by striking ``Each notice'' in the second sentence and
inserting ``Subject to subparagraph (B), each notice'', and
(3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
``(B) Specificity of math or clerical error notice.--
``(i) In general.--The notice provided under subparagraph
(A) shall--

``(I) be sent to the taxpayer's last known address,
``(II) describe the mathematical or clerical error in
comprehensive, plain language, including--

``(aa) the type of error,
``(bb) the section of this title to which the error
relates,
``(cc) a description of the nature of the error, and
``(dd) the specific line of the return on which the error
was made,

``(III) an itemized computation of any direct or incidental
adjustments to be made to the return in correction of the
error, including any adjustment to the amount of--

``(aa) adjusted gross income,
``(bb) taxable income,
``(cc) itemized or standard deductions,
``(dd) nonrefundable credits,
``(ee) credits under section 24, 25A, 32, 35, or 36B,
credits claimed with respect to undistributed long-term
capital gains on Form 2439, credits for Federal taxes paid on
fuels claimed on Form 4136, and any other refundable credits,
``(ff) income tax,
``(gg) other taxes,
``(hh) total tax,
``(ii) Federal income tax withheld or excess tax withheld
under section 3101 or 3201(a),
``(jj) estimated tax payments, including amount applied
from prior year's return,
``(kk) refund or amount owed,
``(ll) net operating loss carryforwards, or
``(mm) credit carryforwards,

``(IV) include the telephone number for the automated phone
transcript service, and
``(V) display the date by which the taxpayer may request to
abate any assessment specified in such notice pursuant to
paragraph (2)(A), in bold, font size 14, and immediately next
to the taxpayer's address on page 1 of the notice.

``(ii) No lists of potential errors.--A notice which
provides multiple potential or alternative errors which may
be applicable to the return shall not be sufficiently
specific for purposes of clause (i)(II); however, if multiple
specific errors apply to the return all such errors should be
listed.''.
(b) Notice of Abatement.--Paragraph (2) of section 6213(b)
is amended by adding at the end the following new
subparagraph:
``(C) Notice.--Upon determination of an abatement pursuant
to subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall send notice to the
taxpayer of such abatement which--
``(i) is sent to the taxpayer's last known address,
``(ii) describes the abatement in comprehensive, plain
language, and
``(iii) provides an itemized computation of any adjustments
to be made to the items described in the notice of
mathematical or clerical error, including any changes to any
item described in paragraph (1)(B)(i)(III).''.
(c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section
shall apply to notices sent after the date which is 12 months
after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(d) Procedures.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury (or
such Secretary's delegate) shall provide for procedures by
which a taxpayer may request an abatement referred to in
section 6213(b)(1)(B)(i)(V) of the Internal Revenue Code of
1986 in writing, electronically, by telephone, or in person.

[[Page H1349]]

(e) Pilot Program.--Not later than 18 months after the date
of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury
(or such Secretary's delegate), in consultation with the
National Taxpayer Advocate, shall--
(1) implement a pilot program to send a trial number of
notices, in an amount which is a statistically significant
portion of all such notices, of mathematical or clerical
error pursuant to section 6213(b) of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986 by certified or registered mail with e-signature
confirmation of receipt, and
(2) report to Congress, aggregated by the type of error
under section 6213(g) of such Code to which the notices
relate, on--
(A) the number of mathematical or clerical errors noticed
under the program and the dollar amounts involved,
(B) the number of abatements of tax and the dollar amounts
of such abatements, and
(C) the effect of such pilot program on taxpayer response
and adjustments or abatements to tax,
with conclusions drawn about the effectiveness of certified
or registered mail, with and without return receipt, and any
other recommendations for improving taxpayer response rates.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Missouri (Mr. Smith) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Missouri.

General Leave

Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks
and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Missouri?
There was no objection.
Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, by voting for unified Republican control of government,
the American people chose accountability and a return to common sense.
There is no better example of bad government than the IRS.
Every year, taxpayers receive notices from the IRS proposing to
adjust their tax liabilities. Unfortunately, the IRS is not required to
explain the reasons for the adjustments, nor does it need to explain
that taxpayers have a legal right to dispute their adjustments within
60 days. The result is that taxpayers may end up paying more in taxes
because they don't know that they can dispute the IRS' assessment of
their tax liability.
This bipartisan legislation, the Internal Revenue Service Math and
Taxpayer Help Act, sponsored by Representatives Feenstra and Schneider,
will level the playing field for taxpayers and hold the IRS
accountable. It will require the IRS to provide individuals with a
clear explanation of the error, showing the mathematical change, and
inform taxpayers that they have 60 days to correct the issue.
Mr. Speaker, I thank Representatives Feenstra and Schneider for their
bipartisan work to bring more transparency to the IRS and protect
American taxpayers from being left in fear of IRS action against them,
and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 998, the Internal Revenue
Service Math and Taxpayer Help Act. This bill will help taxpayers
better understand why they have received a math error notice from the
Internal Revenue Service.
Currently, math error notices can be vague and confusing. The law
does not specify how the IRS must describe the math error or require
the IRS to inform taxpayers that they have 60 days to request that the
math error assessment be reversed.
This bill will fix these issues by requiring the Internal Revenue
Service to provide a clear and straightforward explanation of any
alleged math or clerical error in the notice. It also requires the IRS
to update procedures on how to request abatement and, upon the
determination of an abatement, to issue a notice of abatement to the
taxpayer.
Furthermore, this bill requires implementation of a pilot program to
explore the use of alternative mail delivery methods for issuance of
math error notices.
I am proud to stand with my colleagues on the Committee on Ways and
Means in support of this commonsense reform that will help taxpayers
and improve IRS administration, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may
consume to the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. Feenstra), the sponsor of this
legislation.
Mr. FEENSTRA. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of my bill, the IRS MATH
Act. I thank my friend from Illinois (Mr. Schneider) for working with
me on this commonsense legislation.
Mr. Speaker, if the IRS finds a mistake on a tax return, such as when
a taxpayer accidentally adds a zero to their reported income, the
agency should clearly indicate that error to the taxpayer and explain
why the refund is different than expected.
However, current notices do not explain or contain helpful
information, leaving millions of taxpayers confused about how and when
to rectify the issue with the IRS.
The IRS MATH Act ensures that the IRS clearly spells out errors on
tax forms and helps taxpayers not only understand the mistake but also
allows a challenge if they see fit.
Filing taxes is already burdensome and time consuming. We can improve
customer service by promoting open and transparent communication
between the IRS and the taxpayer when a tax error is identified.
Mr. Speaker, I will continue to work to simplify our tax filing
system and push for full reauthorization of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
so that our families, farmers, and small businesses can keep more of
their hard-earned money.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I
thank Chairman Smith for allowing this bill to come to the floor.
Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 998 is a commonsense,
bipartisan bill. I encourage my colleagues to support it, and I yield
back the balance of my time.
Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my
time.
Mr. Speaker, Americans fear the IRS for very good reason. Under
current law, when the IRS claims that you made a math error on your
return, they are not required to explain the error or notify taxpayers
of their right to appeal within 60 days. What is worse, if taxpayers
don't comply, they could be forced to pay more in taxes.
This bill before us, H.R. 998, the Internal Revenue Service Math and
Taxpayer Help Act, will level the playing field for taxpayers by
requiring the IRS to explain themselves and notify taxpayers that they
have 60 days to challenge this adjustment.
This legislation is an important step to simplifying tax
administration and making the IRS more accountable to taxpayers.
Mr. Speaker, I thank Representatives Feenstra and Schneider for their
bipartisan work on this bill. I urge my colleagues to support it, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Smith) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 998, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

____________________