IRS Begins to Ramp Up Private Collection Program

The IRS has begun notifying its employees of the upcoming initiative to outsource back tax collection to private agencies. The IRS is slated to begin the program on August 31.

The National Treasury Employees Union said that IRS workers were informed by email that the program will go ahead as planned beginning at the end of the month. The plan has hit many obstacles along the way to launch.

There still remain potential roadblocks for the program. The U.S. House approved a fiscal year 2007 IRS budget in June that blocked funding for private debt collectors. In addition, 27 House members signed a letter urging the agency to halt the program. The Senate, however, hasn’t added similar restrictions in its version of the IRS budget.

“Congress gave us this tool, and I’m going to do everything I can to get every nickel that’s owed to the government,” IRS Commissioner Mark Everson said in a statement Wednesday. “If both chambers act and the authority is revoked, we will immediately stand down.?