Business News: IRS to close 68 help centers nationwideIRS to close 68 help centers nationwide
by Freddie Mooche
Internal Revenue Service help centers in 68 communities are slated to close to help the IRS reduce costs and modernize its operations, the agency said.
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May 28, 2005 (AXcess News) Washington - Internal Revenue Service help centers in 68 communities are slated to close to help the IRS reduce costs and modernize its operations, the agency said.
The Internal Revenue Service is closing the help centers in communities where geographic and demographic factors, employee costs, and expenses were considered in factoring in which IRS help centers would be closed.
The IRS is also moving to coax more tax preparers to use electronic filing services in an effort to manage federal income tax filings in a more efficient and cost-effective manner.
Critics say streamlining operations by eliminating IRS help centers forces many income tax filers to seek professional help in preparing their federal income tax forms, putting undue financial burdens on the elderly and low-income wage earners.
The Internal Revenue Service said the closures are necessary though the federal tax agency said that employees there would be offered early retirement, where qualified, and that those remaining would be offered positions in other IRS locations. That no layoffs were expected from the IRS help center closures.
Colleen Kelley, president of the National Treasury Employees Union, told reporters that the IRS is forcing consumers to use the Internet by closing the centers.
Kelly said that many of the tax payers who use the IRS help centers do not have access to the Internet.
The IRS said that over the last two years tax payer use of its 400 help centers across the nation had dropped by 19 percent. Use of toll-free phone lines to seek help climbed 7 percent in the same period, while visits to IRS Web sites saw triple-digit increases, the agency says.
The IRS has given no schedule to its 68 help center closings, though some are slated to be closed this fall, the tax agency said.