Secret plan shows the IRS wants to ‘get out of the business of talking with taxpayers,' advocate says

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/federal-eye/wp/2016/01/06/secret-plan-shows-the-irs-wants-to-get-out-of-the-business-of-talking-with-taxpayers-advocate-says/

But she warned that the push toward relying on technology and tax preparers to answer questions threatens to create a "pay to play" system where the only taxpayers who will get personal service are those who can afford to pay for it.... the plan for online accounts will put taxpayers at a huge disadvantage if they are poor and don't have access to the Internet, feel uncomfortable discussing sensitive financial matters online or need to resolve issues that are not "cookie cutter" questions that can be resolved by talking to a person (or computer) on line.
The plan "says little about reductions in core taxpayer services," Olson writes. "Many taxpayers will find it much harder to resolve their problems and will have to pay third parties to assist them." The result, she says, will be "frustration and alienation" that may lead over time to more tax cheats.


So expect more steamrolling, bullying, and extra-legal maneuvers like account seizures from our friends at the IRS.