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Representative Carter Calls on IRS to Address Backlog

Offers Solutions to Provide Taxpayer Relief

Washington, January 27, 2022
(Washington, DC)- Representative John Carter (TX-31) joined his colleagues in a letter to Treasury Secretary, Janet Yellen, urging the Treasury Department to implement measures to alleviate the IRS backlog and bring relief to the American taxpayer during this tax return season.
 
"While every federal agency has been impacted by COVID-19, the IRS has been hit particularly hard and has accumulated a backlog of more than 8 million forms. This backlog leads to delays in tax return processing and people are unable to receive their payments," said Representative Carter. "I'm hearing from my constituents daily about how this IRS backlog is impacting their businesses and finances. With inflation at 7% and prices skyrocketing, the American people cannot afford any delay in receiving their tax refund. Many citizens count on their tax refund as extra income, and a delay caused by the IRS backlog could result in Americans not being able to pay their bills on time, an unfortunate reality many people already face. Serving my constituents is my top priority, and I am hopeful we can work with the IRS to implement these solutions and ease taxpayers' burden."
 
The requested solutions include:
  • Halting automated collections from now until at least 90 days after April 18, 2022;
  • Delaying the collection process for filers until any active and pending penalty abatement requests have been processed;
  • Streamlining the reasonable cause penalty abatement process for taxpayers impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic without the need for written correspondence;
  • Providing targeted tax penalty relief for taxpayers who paid at least 70 percent of the tax due for the 2020 and 2021 tax year;
  • Expediting processing of amended returns and provide TAS and congressional caseworkers with timely responses.
 
Read the full letter HERE.
 
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