Maui Resident Appointed to National Taxpayer Advocacy Panel

Susan Bentley. Courtesy of Bentley.

By Sonia Isotov

South Maui resident Susan Bentley has been selected by the Treasury Department to serve on the national Taxpayer Advocacy Panel (TAP).

“I feel fortunate to represent Hawaii’s taxpayers on this panel,” said Susan Bentley. “I look forward to reaching out to individuals as well as local groups and organizations to hear input about systemic issues with our tax system that I can take back to the panel for analysis and to recommended solutions to the IRS.”

TAP is a federal oversight committee of volunteers formed in 2002 to listen to taxpayers, identify taxpayers’ issues, and make recommendations for improving IRS service and customer satisfaction.

Susan is one of 83 volunteers nationwide chosen for the panel, and will serve for three years. She will represent Hawaii’s taxpayers as well as work on national issues. She has been appointed to the panel’s Taxpayer Burden Reduction Committee.

“We are working on issues related to processes and technology that add undue burden on taxpayers trying to comply with their tax filing obligations,” said Bentley. “Specifically, at this time we are working on issues reported by taxpayers related to electronic filing.”

TAP members meet monthly by phone and devote 300-500 hours yearly to the panel.

“As the IRS remains committed to improving services and assistance to taxpayers, the input from the citizen volunteers at TAP has never been more important,” said Nina Olson, head of the Taxpayer Advocate Service. “The Service is committed to making sure the IRS seeks out and considers panel members’ views on key initiatives impacting taxpayers before decisions are made.”

The panel’s emphasis is on general complaints, issues that affect a majority of taxpayers on a national level.

Bentley can be contacted at [email protected] or by calling 888-912-1227. For more information about TAP, go to www.improveirs.org.