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The National Taxpayer Advocate, Nina Olson, has been holding Public Forums on the “IRS Future State.”  The IRS’s Future State is a project that proposes utilizing electronic and on-line services to better serve the community of US taxpayers. There are many good reasons for using electronic filing and on-line accounts to simplify and stream-line tax compliancy however, the IRS must take into consideration the needs of all US taxpayers and understand how the IRS Future State will impact these communities.

ACA was asked to speak at the May 17th 2016 public forum on behalf of ACA, AARO and FAWCO, to educate the IRS, the public and the media not only on how the IRS Future State would impact Americans overseas but also, what the IRS needs to consider prior to implementing such a program across the board. In addition, ACA used the opportunity to educate on the overseas American community itself in order to dispel the existing misperceptions of this community being inordinately wealthy and involved in tax evasion.

The forum was not an opportunity to discuss tax reform itself as the IRS is not the agency responsible for reforming tax law however, our testimony about the complexity of the code and the need for simplification was made in the context of the remarks we were asked to present. Our testimony reinforced that the real issue facing this community is the complexity of the tax code itself, the overlapping reporting forms and that there is an immediate need for simplification. See: http://taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov/Media/Default/Documents/PublicForums/Serrato_statement-1.pdf

ACA presented along side other community groups that also have particular needs such as those engaged in the on-demand economy and the physically and mentally disabled. ACA’s comments were well received and quoted in the media, particularly in media outlets involved in the subject such as Tax Notes, which is the leading publication in Washington, DC for those involved in all topics tax, including tax reform, regulatory and oversight, etc.

Public Forums such as these are essential to ACA’s work. They help ACA educate the legislature, the administrative offices, the public and the media on the community of Americans living and working overseas. ACA congratulates The National Taxpayer Advocate Nina Olson and her team for holding these important forums and for inviting ACA, AARO and FAWCO, allowing our organizations to represent the voice of the community of Americans overseas.

The ACA testimony can be found here;

the public forum announcement can be found here:

the agenda can be found here;

and speaker biographies can be found here.