July 29,2005

Baucus Commends Decision to Keep Tax Centers Open

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) Today, U.S. Senator Max Baucus applauded the decision to keep sixtyeight Internal Revenue Service Taxpayer Assistance Centers (TACs) open to the public.Currently, there are four hundred TACs to assist taxpayers with their tax obligations. Thesecenters provide a valuable service to taxpayers seeking assistance with a variety of tax matters.

Last May, the IRS announced that it would shut down sixty eight centers due to budgetconstraints. The House and Senate Appropriations Committees provided enough funding to keepthe centers open in the Fiscal Year 2006 budget and prohibited the IRS from closing them untilthe Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) completes a study to determinethe impact on taxpayers. In response to the decision to keep the TACs open, Baucus made thefollowing comment:

“I am pleased to see the IRS made the decision to keep these centers up and running.Closing the centers would reduce face-to-face service and would not serve the best interests ofAmerica’s taxpayers. The decision to shut down the TACs, including three in my home state ofMontana, would leave many taxpayers out in the cold. It never makes sense to slam the door onthose trying to pay their taxes. Let’s flip the sign over from, ‘Sorry we’re closed’ back to ‘openfor business.’”