I am here to provide an update of the Collection Due Process (CDP) Summit Initiative, which Carolyn Lee first wrote about in this post. Some of you may be aware that the American Bar Association holds a Low Income Taxpayer Representation Workshop each December in Washington, D.C. For 2019, the focus is on the Collection Due Process Summit Initiative. Anyone interested in Collection Due Process is welcome to attend. Registration is only $20 for ABA members, and $30 for nonmembers.
The meeting will be held December 3 from 8:30 to noon at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP. More details are below.
The Collection Due Process Summit Initiative
The origin for the Collection Due Process Summit Initiative came about when preparing for a panel presentation for the 2019 May Tax Meeting for the American Bar Association Section of Taxation meeting in Washington, D.C. The panelists were Keith Fogg, Judge Gustafson, Mitch Hyman, Carolyn Lee, Erin Stearns and myself. Within the panel, we made a point of discussing issues with CDP to avoid complaining and with the goal of brainstorming creative ways for positive change. We also wanted to look at several areas related to CDP – the CDP notices mailed out by the IRS, the meetings with Appeals, the Tax Court process, and whether a creative solution like mediation would apply.
read more...Following the panel, several members of the group kept in touch. We worked to develop a core group of people to steer the Summit Initiative. With that steering committee, we discussed a set of roughly 30 issues with CDP. We took that input and people’s votes for what would be popular. We also wanted input from within the IRS of what sounded realistic. If something would not work, why not? We took the input on those 30 issues, divided into stages, and selected the top 3 to 4 for each.
It must be noted that the steering committee includes private practitioners, educators, IRS Chief Counsel, the Taxpayer Advocate Service, and LITC directors. We also have people within IRS Appeals, IRS Collections, and the Tax Court that we stay in communication with and use as sounding boards regarding their stages of CDP.
Members of the steering committee also wanted to provide further education on the CDP process. At the 2019 Fall Tax Meeting for the American Bar Association Section of Taxation meeting in San Francisco, there were 3 panels developed by the CDP Summit Initiative connected to the CDP process. The first panel, for the Young Lawyers Forum and Diversity committees, was part of the Tax Bridge on the Road, titled “What is Collection Due Process? A Practical Introduction to the Stages of CDP.” The second, for the Individual & Family Taxation committee, was called “Collection Due Process Notices: Much Needed Works in Progress.” The third panel, for the Pro Bono & Tax Clinics committee, was called “Prior Opportunities to Dispute Liability in Collection Due Process: An Oversized Reaction to Insufficient Action.”
The Workshop
While it is a goal of the CDP to promote education regarding CDP, we also want to bring discussion for change. The day will start out with some history of CDP and the Summit Initiative. From there, we turn to a panel on how to approach change with the IRS to achieve the best results. Next, we turn to breakout sessions regarding the top opportunities cited at the various stages of the CDP process. We will bring the group together to share what each group learned before turning to Keith Fogg for closing comments. We will be using the results to guide working groups next year to tackle those top opportunities at each stage.
All who are interested in CDP improvement are invited – from the private bar, Enrolled Agents, CPAs, and those attending the LITC conference that week. As you can see, Keith and others from the Procedurally Taxing website are involved with the CDP Summit Initiative. The cost is low so should not keep any of you in the area from attending – especially as it will include 2 MCLE credits and a box lunch!
2019 Low Income Taxpayer Representative Symposium
Collection Due Process Summit Initiative Workshop
December 3, 2019
8:30 a.m. – Noon
Improving Procedures for Taxpayers to Arrange
Sustainable Plans to Collect the Correct Amount of Tax Owed.
Who should attend? Everyone interested in the efficient, effective collection of tax, via procedures that are humane for taxpayers, including the IRS (Collection, Appeals, Counsel), taxpayer representatives and the Tax Court
Date: Tuesday, December 3, 2019
Time: 8:30 a.m. – Noon (box lunches to grab and go)
Location: Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP
1111 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20004
Registration Fee: $30 General Registration
$20 ABA Member
$20 Full-time LITC Employee
Free Full-time J.D., LL.M., or M.T. Candidates (No CLE Credit)
[Law Student registrants who are current nonmembers will also receive complimentary Membership in the ABA and the Section of Taxation]
AGENDA
8:30 a.m.
Opportunities for CDP Improvement: Efforts Underway by the Collection Due Process Summit Initiative.
Collection Due Process (CDP) is a bundle of IRS collection procedural protections governed by IRC section 6320 and 6330, that affect taxpayers, their representatives, the IRS, and the Tax Court. CDP provides a structured path to achieving sustainable tax collection alternatives of procedural value to taxpayers and IRS Collection professionals. However, over time, CDP as applied lapsed into policies and procedures that often inhibit a broad range of individual and business taxpayers from establishing collection alternatives to full payment of the correct tax owed, which taxpayers can maintain. In addition, CDP procedures as applied frequently create frustration for IRS Collection professionals and IRS Counsel attorneys. These developments are contrary to the express beneficial intent of the Section 6320/6330 legislation and imperil efforts to efficiently arrange sustainable methods for taxpayers to pay the correct amount of tax owed.
Change for the better is in the air, in the form of the CDP Summit Initiative established in May 2019 to support CDP and improve how it works. Summiteers include representatives of all stakeholders, as direct participants or advisory resources. Following a methodical, consensus-driven process, the Summit Steering Committee identified priority opportunities with high potential to increase the beneficial impact of CDP in application. Summit Working groups formed around the priority opportunities are in the early stages of determining objectives, strategies and tactics to result in change.
This session will update LITR participants about Summit-designated opportunities to improve CDP, why the opportunities were selected for further exploration and action, and how all stakeholders interested in the effective and efficient arrangement of reasonable collection alternatives will benefit from the Summit’s collaborative work.
The CDP Summit’s work has the support of several ABA Tax Section committees including the Pro Bono & Tax Clinic Committee and the Individual Tax and Family Committee. ABA tax meetings have provided an important platform to discuss CDP issues and solutions while educating conference participants about functioning effectively within CDP boundaries.
Moderator: Sarah Lora, Low Income Tax Clinic, Lewis & Clark Law School, Portland, OR
Panelists: Mitchel Hyman, IRS Office of Chief Counsel, Washington, D.C.; William Schmidt, Kansas Legal Services, Kansas City, KS; Erin Stearns, Low Income Taxpayer Clinic, University of Denver, Denver, CO
9:15 a.m.
Approaching Change With the IRS
This panel will identify and explain constructive ways for practitioners to work with the IRS to create positive change benefiting both the IRS and taxpayers in the area of CDP and beyond. Panelists will explore various levels of rulemaking, the scope and authority of those rules, and ways to influence those rules. The panel also will discuss tools practitioners may use to explore and understand the underpinnings of regulatory actions, such as the Freedom of Information Act, as well as effective opportunities for proposing regulatory reform. The panel will also discuss the role of the Taxpayer Advocate Service’s Systemic Advocacy Management System (SAMS) in identifying the need for systemic changes and implementing those changes.
Moderator: Matthew James, Low Income Tax Clinic, North Carolina Central University, Durham, NC
Panelists: Mary Gillum, Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee & the Cumberlands, Oak Ridge, TN; John B. Snyder, III, Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic, University of Baltimore, Baltimore, MD; James P. Leith, Local Taxpayer Advocate, Baltimore, MD
10:00 a.m. Break
10:15 a.m. Exploring CDP Challenges and Practical Solutions – Working Breakout Sessions
Session participants will actively explore CDP policy and procedures focusing on CDP Summit priority opportunities and potential feasible solutions. Output will further the work of Summit Working Groups to effect change and increase efficient, fair tax collection.
Workshop participants choose to attend one of three concurrent sessions:
(1) Improving IRS CDP Notices and Communications. This program will educate participants about IRS communication approaches as they pertain to CDP rights and procedures and known issues with the communications. The session leaders will facilitate an exchange of ideas for more effective messaging to increase taxpayer participation in CDP and more effective engagement with Collections at the earliest possible stage.
Facilitators: William Schmidt, Kansas Legal Services, Kansas City, KS; Jeff Wilson, Taxpayer Advocate Service, Indianapolis, IN; Beverly Winstead, Low Income Taxpayer Clinic, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD
(2) Improving CDP Administrative Proceedings. Participants will learn about opportunities for more effective engagement with IRS Appeals, including when a taxpayer may challenge the accuracy of an assessed liability, the critical role of a record in establishing a sustainable collection alternative to immediate full payment, and procedural traps for the unwary. Participants will collaborate to identify improvements yielding more efficient and effective application of CDP through constructive interaction between taxpayers (or their representatives) and Appeals.
Facilitators: Soreé Finley, Charlotte Center for Legal Advocacy, Charlotte, NC; Susan Morgenstern, Local Taxpayer Advocate, Cleveland, OH; Erin Stearns, Low Income Taxpayer Clinic, University of Denver Sturm College of Law, Denver, CO
(3) Exploring CDP rights and procedures within judicial proceedings. Focused on improving effectiveness and efficiency for all participants in Tax Court matters, this session will analyze common petitioner and respondent approaches to litigating CDP in Tax Court. The session will explore opportunities to increase the number of taxpayers who exit litigation with a sustainable plan to collect the correct amount of tax due. Participants will discuss the Court’s authority and limits to achieving a result satisfactorily resolving the issues between the parties; typically, a collection solution for taxpayers litigating in good faith.
Facilitators: Keith Fogg, Federal Tax Clinic, Harvard Law School, Jamaica Plain, MA; Christine Speidel, Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law, Villanova, PA
11:15 a.m. Discussion of Breakout Session Results and Identification of Next Steps
Breakout session leaders will report on results of the group discussions, focusing on pragmatic elements for IRS procedural change, practitioner performance improvement and taxpayer orderly, effective interaction with CDP. Essentially a collaborative CLE, educating the participants on best practices in applying CDP, the output will inform the strategic and educational work for the Collection Due Process Summit Initiative during 2020. Proposals will address, among other topics, an analysis of IRS CDP correspondence, taxpayer rights in Appeals, and the role of judicial review in guiding sustainable collection alternatives. This session will emphasize sharing taxpayer representative practice tips and easy-to-implement internal IRS process improvements.
Facilitators: Susan Morgenstern, Local Taxpayer Advocate, Cleveland, OH; William Schmidt, Kansas Legal Services, Kansas City, KS; Christine Speidel, Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law, Villanova, PA; Erin Stearns, University of Denver Sturm College of Law, Denver, CO
11:55 a.m. Closing remarks. Addressing the importance of critical analysis of CDP as applied and vigilant efforts to support the proper application of CDP, in order to achieve the beneficial intent of IRC Sections 6320 and 6330.
Presenter: Keith Fogg, Federal Tax Clinic, Harvard Law School, Jamaica Plain, MA
Noon Workshop adjourns. Box lunches to grab and go.
About William Schmidt
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