Congressman Jason Crow Pushes IRS to Clear up Backlogs and Address Long Wait Times

Crow: We Have Helped Constituents in Dire Financial Straits Who Could Not Afford a Delay, Those at Risk of Losing Their Home or Business; It’s Imperative That This IRS System Improve Service Standards

WASHINGTON – Congressman Jason Crow (CO-06) is pushing the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to clear up its backlog and address issues leading to long wait times for Coloradans to have their returns processed and receive timely tax refunds. With the current IRS backlog, Crow's office has encountered increasing difficulty getting answers for constituents. In a letter to IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig, Crow requests improvements to the Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) so his office can better attend to his constituents’ tax issues, and do so in a timely manner.

“The TAS has helped constituents in dire financial straits who could not afford a delay in their tax refund, as well as those at risk of losing their home or their business. The work that the TAS does in answering congressional inquiries is invaluable,” wrote Congressman Crow.

“As my office continues to help constituents process their returns, my team has heard concerns about the TAS’s delays and outdated communications tools. The majority of the constituents my office helps have turned to my office as a last resort after waiting months or years for IRS assistance. They have not had success reaching the IRS or the TAS by phone, and experience processing times of upwards of 8 weeks for even the simplest cases,” Crow continued. “In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and high inflation, many constituents cannot afford these long processing times.”

In his effort to improve wait times, Crow’s letter requests that IRS:

-Make every effort to improve the processing times for returns;

-Clearly communicate steps congressional offices should take to reduce case processing times;

-Modernize communication procedures between taxpayers, congressional offices, and the TAS; and

-Streamline the process for prioritizing and expediting cases for taxpayers experiencing hardship, especially loss of housing.

Last month, the National Taxpayer Advocate, an independent organization within the IRS, reported that 21.3 million tax returns remain unprocessed, 7 percent more than at the same time last year. In his letter, Crow notes in his letter that staff shortages, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, have contributed to agency-wide delays.

See the full text of theletter here