[Epoch Times] The IRS has announced a major yet "common-sense" policy change that will put an end to most unannounced agent visits to taxpayers’ homes, mostly because of security concerns.The move, effective immediately, reverses decades of policy that saw IRS revenue officers knock on the doors of taxpayers’ homes without forewarning in attempts to resolve delinquent tax matters.
The reason for the change, according to a statement by the agency, is to lower the risk that anxiety-provoking surprise home visits by tax enforcement agents could spiral out of control, posing a hazard to both taxpayers and agency field officers.
"These visits created extra anxiety for taxpayers already wary of potential scam artists," IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said in a statement. "At the same time, the uncertainty around what IRS employees faced when visiting these homes created stress for them as well. This is the right thing to do and the right time to end it."
Part of the problem, according to the IRS, is that there has been a rise in recent years of scam artists posing as IRS agents, creating confusion for both taxpayers and local law enforcement.
The change comes amid the IRS’s recent rollout of a new Strategic Operating Plan, which seeks, in part, to put a kinder face on the tax enforcement agency.
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The union for tax agents, the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), praised the decision to shift policy regarding unannounced door knocks.
"We applaud Commissioner Werfel’s quick action after hearing the safety concerns raised by NTEU leaders and IRS Field Collection employees who faced dangerous situations that put their safety at risk," Tony Reardon, president of the NTEU, said in a statement.
He blamed "false, inflammatory rhetoric about the agency and its workforce" for adding to the danger facing field agents.
While Mr. Reardon didn’t elaborate, his remarks suggest a reference to Republican allegations that part of the recent $80 billion funding boost would be used to hire an "army" of new IRS agents who would target lower-earning Americans with audits.