

IR-2018-67, March 21, 2018
WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service recommended and the Department of the Treasury has approved the selection of 25 new members to serve on the nationwide Taxpayer Advocacy Panel (TAP). The TAP is a federal advisory committee charged with providing taxpayer suggestions to improve IRS customer service.
The new TAP members will join 40 returning members to round out the panel of 65 volunteers for 2018. See the list below for member names. The new members were selected from more than 700 interested individuals who applied during an open recruitment period last spring and the pool of alternate members who applied in prior years.
The TAP listens to taxpayers, identifies issues, and makes suggestions for improving IRS service and customer satisfaction. Oversight and program support for the TAP are provided by the Taxpayer Advocate Service, an independent organization within the IRS that helps resolve taxpayer problems and makes administrative and legislative recommendations to mitigate systemic problems.
“To meet the needs of the taxpaying public, it is critical that the IRS listen to taxpayers to hear what their needs and preferences are,” said Nina E. Olson, the National Taxpayer Advocate. “The citizen volunteers who serve on the TAP are, first and foremost, taxpayers who bring a taxpayer perspective to bear in advising on the IRS’s taxpayer service activities.”
TAP members work with IRS executives on a variety of topics, with an emphasis on those involving the Wage & Investment and Small Business/Self-Employed operating divisions. Members also serve as conduits for bringing grassroots concerns raised by the taxpaying public to the attention of the IRS.
TAP members are U.S. citizens who volunteer to serve a three-year appointment and are expected to devote 200 to 300 hours per year to panel activities. To the extent possible, TAP members are demographically and geographically diverse, providing balanced representation from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. In addition, there is one TAP member from abroad who represents the interests of taxpayers working, living, or doing business abroad or in a U.S. territory.
Taxpayers can contact the TAP representative for their geographic area by calling 888-912-1227 (a toll-free call) or online. (https://improveirs.org/) Taxpayers can also send written correspondence to the TAP at the following address:
Taxpayer Advocacy Panel (TAP)
TA: TAP, Room 1509
1111 Constitution Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20224
2018 TAP New and Returning Members, by location:
* = New member
Location
Last name
First name
AL
*Russell
Richard
AR
Hoff
Gary
AZ
*Tracy
Kathryn
CA
*Creggett
Kathleen
CA
Herman
Richard
CA
Medina
Loren
CA
*Mosely
Tiffany
CO
Petersen
Kristen
CT
Smolnik
Dan
DC
*Campbell
Sheila
DE
*Clark-Robinson
Kimberly
FL 
Azzaro
Alice
FL
Sowell
James
GA
*Kleiber
Phillip
GA
*Sampson
Joseph
HI
Tsujimura
Ruth
IA
Hower
Angela
ID
*Stratton
Bruce
IL
Brookens
Michelle
IL
Mason
Kimberly
IN
*Vanderver
Stephen
IN
*Sewald
Marco
KS
*Sachs
Kathy
KY
Hall
Scott
KY
Horton
Felicia
LA
Dorsey
Tasheka
MA
*Shamochian
Michael
MD
*Selden
Stephen
ME
Bemis
Ellen
MN
Kasal
Millicent
MO
Florence
Mary
MO
Martin
Joseph
MS
Buchanan
David
MT
Doak
Penny
NC
Manasa
Harold
NE
Hunter
Jeri
NH
Hutchins
Micoya
NJ
*Walrond
Carmela
NM
Davis
Kathy
NV
*Rendo
Carlos
NY
Hirschfield
Heidi
NY
Illickal
Manoj
NY
*Peterson
Bernard
NY
*Sabio
Robin
OH
*Johnson
Ryan
OH
Nelson
Diana
OK
Olsen
Sheila
PA
Burrows
Alyssa
PR
Torres
Jacob
RI
Wennermark
Susan
SC
Weeks
Juliana
SD
Oliver
Zanobia
TN
Mason
William
TN
*Smith
Thurston
TX
Frausto
Victor
TX
Jones
David
TX
Pierre
Kimberly
TX
*Tessmer
April
UT
*Aganikian
Vahagn
UT
*Bunner
Tracy
VA
*Kusiak
Patrick
WA
*Williams
Cheryl
WI
Hoffman
Holly
WV
Holley 
Joseph
WY
Bolin
Timothy


