Irs Forming Citizen Panel To Suggest Changes Northwest Group Will Be One Of Four Created This Year In An Effort To Reduce Complaints

Think you can build a better Internal Revenue Service?

Well, you could get your chance.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury is organizing a Pacific Northwest Citizen Advocacy Panel that will make recommendations for improving the quality of IRS service.

The group of 12 to 14 members will be one of four created this year in an effort to reduce complaints about the nation’s tax collector, some of which were aired in wrenching congressional hearings.

Most members will be recruited from Washington, Oregon, Alaska and Hawaii.

Deborah Diamond, program manager for the region, said the Northwest panel will be unique because a subgroup will focus on small-business issues.

Because of that expanded mandate, a few representatives from California will be included, she said.

Diamond said the panel will not resolve taxpayer disputes. Although citizens willing to waive their privacy can discuss their individual cases in public hearings, she said, they will be referred to taxpayer advocates within each state for resolution of their problems.

She said she expects the group to hold at least one hearing in each state in the region annually.

The IRS has taken several measures to maintain an arm’s-length relationship with the citizen groups, Diamond said.

For example, recruitment will be handled by Booz Allen & Hamilton Inc., a consulting firm.

The process starts with a phone call to a toll-free number - 1-888-449-1071 - by those interested in participating.

Callers will undergo an initial screening over the phone. They must be U.S. citizens, residents of the region, and willing to undergo tax compliance and FBI background checks.

They cannot be foreign lobbyists.

Those who qualify and remain interested will receive an application through the mail.

A Booz Allen team will screen the applications, then interview the top 50 candidates.

Finally, the top 20 prospects will be ranked according to skills. Treasury officials will select panelists from that list.

In South Florida, where the first panel has already convened, Diamond said 220 people called about participating. Of those, 85 submitted applications.

Eleven were selected.

Diamond said members range from a police sergeant to a woman who helps Hispanic prisoners earn their general equivalency degree.

She said officials would like candidates who volunteer for at least three groups but no more than five.

Serving on the IRS panel will consume about 100 hours of time a year, she said.

Deliberations, like recruitment, will also be independent.

Diamond said Florida panel members insisted on selecting their own facilitator instead of having the IRS pick one for them.

The rebuke was a new experience for the agency, she said.

“It’s like how to be participative instead of directive,” she said. “It’s a new kind of relationship for the IRS.”

Diamond said the panel’s work will be ongoing. Members will serve two years, although some of the first group will get three-year terms in order to stagger turnover.

The Northwest panel should begin its work next January, with the possibility its first recommendations will be ready by next fall.

The other panels are in Milwaukee and Brooklyn, N.Y.

Diamond said the work of the advocacy groups will be unrelated to that of a nine-member board authorized by the IRS reform bill signed Wednesday by President Clinton.