I 114th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 3832 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES October 26, 2015 Mr. Renacci (for himself, Mr. Lewis , Mr. Roskam , Mr. Buchanan , and Mr. Reichert ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means , and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary , for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to prevent tax-related identity theft and tax fraud, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Stolen Identify Refund Fraud Prevention Act of 2015 . 2. Modification of due dates for certain information filing returns (a) Accelerated filing of forms W–2 and W–3 (1) In general Section 6071 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (d), and by inserting after subsection (b) the following new subsection: (c) Returns relating to employee wage information and forms 1099–MISC Returns and statements made under sections 6051 and 6052, and any payments required to be reported on Form 1099–MISC with respect to nonemployee compensation, shall be filed on or before February 15 of the year following the calendar year to which such returns relate. . (2) Conforming amendment Subsection (b) of section 6071 of such Code is amended by striking subparts B and C of part III of this subchapter and inserting subpart B of part III of this subchapter (other than returns filed on Form 1099–MISC with respect to nonemployee compensation) . (3) Effective date The amendments made by this subsection shall apply to returns and statements relating to calendar years beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act. (b) Study and recommendations regarding administrative implementation Not later than January 1, 2018, the Secretary of the Treasury shall submit to the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of the Senate— (1) a recommendation of whether the due dates for filing Forms W–2 and W–3 with the Internal Revenue Service and the Social Security Administration should be further accelerated in order to prevent tax refund fraud, (2) recommendations for processes— (A) to match the information reported on Forms W–2 and Forms 1099–MISC for the effective processing of returns and accurate determination of refunds, and (B) to correct errors on such documents, and (3) any other recommendations the Secretary may have for accelerating information reporting, including the identification of any other forms that should be due on an accelerated schedule, in order to prevent tax refund fraud. 3. Centralized point of contact for identity theft victims The Secretary of the Treasury, or the Secretary’s delegate, shall establish and maintain an office at the Internal Revenue Service and procedures to ensure that any taxpayer whose return has been delayed or otherwise adversely affected due to the theft of the taxpayer’s identity has a centralized point of contact throughout the processing of his or her case. The office shall coordinate with other offices within the Internal Revenue Service to resolve the taxpayer’s case as quickly as possible. 4. Taxpayer notification of suspected identity theft (a) In general Chapter 77 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following new section: 7529. Notification of suspected identity theft If the Secretary determines that there was an unauthorized use of the identity of any taxpayer, the Secretary shall— (1) as soon as practicable and without jeopardizing an investigation relating to tax administration, notify the taxpayer, and (2) if any person is criminally charged by indictment or information relating to such unauthorized use, notify such taxpayer as soon as practicable of such charge. . (b) Clerical amendment The table of sections for chapter 77 of such Code is amended by adding at the end the following new item: Sec. 7529. Notification of suspected identity theft. . (c) Effective date The amendments made by this section shall apply to determinations made after the date of the enactment of this Act. 5. Extension of IRS authority to require truncated Social Security numbers on Form W–2 (a) In general Paragraph (2) of section 6051(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by striking his social security number and inserting an identifying number for the employee . (b) Effective date The amendment made by this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act. 6. Electronic filing opt out Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury, or the Secretary’s delegate, shall implement a program under which a taxpayer who has filed an identity theft affidavit with the Secretary may elect to prevent the processing of any Federal tax return submitted in an electronic format by the taxpayer or a person purporting to be the taxpayer. 7. Criminal penalty for using a false identity in connection with tax fraud (a) In general Section 7206 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended— (1) by striking Any person and inserting the following: (a) In general Any person , and (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection: (b) Use of false identity Any person who willfully misappropriates another person's taxpayer identity (as defined in section 6103(b)(6)) for the purpose of making any list, return, account, statement, or other document submitted to the Secretary under the provisions of this title shall be guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than $250,000 ($500,000 in the case of a corporation) or imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both, together with the costs of prosecution. . (b) Aggravated identity theft Section 1028A(c) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by striking or at the end of paragraph (10), by striking the period at the end of paragraph (11) and inserting ; or , and by adding at the end the following new paragraph: (12) section 7206(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to use of false identity in connection with tax fraud). . (c) Effective date The amendments made by this section shall apply to offenses committed after the date of the enactment of this Act. 8. Improvement in access to information in the National Directory of New Hires (a) In general Paragraph (3) of section 453(i) of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 653(i) ) is amended to read as follows: (3) Administration of Federal tax laws relating to fraud The Secretary of the Treasury shall have access to the information in the National Directory of New Hires for the sole purpose of identifying and preventing fraudulent tax return filings and claims for refund under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. . (b) Effective date The amendment made by this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act. 9. Repeal of provision regarding certain tax compliance procedures and reports Section 2004 of the Internal Revenue Service Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998 ( 26 U.S.C. 6012 note) is repealed. 10. Report on refund fraud Not later than September 30, 2018, and biannually thereafter through September 30, 2026, the Secretary of the Treasury (or the Secretary’s delegate) shall report to the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of the Senate on the extent and nature of fraud involving the use of a misappropriated taxpayer identity with respect to claims for refund under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 during the preceding completed income tax filing season, and the detection, prevention, and enforcement activities undertaken by the Internal Revenue Service with respect to such fraud, including— (1) detailing efforts to combat identity theft fraud, including an update on the victims’ assistance unit; (2) providing an update on Internal Revenue Service efforts and results associated with limiting multiple refunds to the same financial account and physical address, with appropriate exceptions; and (3) discussing Internal Revenue Service efforts associated with other avenues for addressing identity theft refund fraud. In addition, each report shall provide an update on the implementation of this Act, analyze other ways to accelerate information matching, and identify the need for any further legislation to protect taxpayer resources and information, including preventing tax refund fraud related to the Internal Revenue Service’s e-Services tools and electronic filing identification numbers.