CS-16-476 supporting statement

SUPPORTING STATEMENT

Information Collection (ICR) Approval Request to Conduct Customer Satisfaction Research (OMB #1545-1432)

Title: 2017 Virtual Service Delivery Survey

A. JUSTIFICATION

1. Circumstances Making the Collection of Information Necessary

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) enlists a balanced measurement system consisting of business results, customer satisfaction, and employee satisfaction. This initiative is part of the Service-wide effort to maintain a system of balanced organizational performance measures mandated by the IRS Restructuring and Reform Act (RRA) of 1998. This is also a result of Executive Order 12862 that requires all government agencies to survey their customers.

For the Wage and Investment Division, a new service delivery option is the Appointment Line, which was set up for taxpayers interested in scheduling Field Assistance (FA) face to face service. The IRS piloted Appointment Based Service for walk-in offices during the 2015 filing seasons. Based on the results of the pilot, all IRS walk-in offices will be on Appointment Based Service by the end of calendar year 2016. Additionally, in an effort to reach more taxpayers, FA has leveraged partners to operate Virtual Service Delivery (VSD) sites. These VSD sites provide taxpayers with face to screen service in a skype-like environment. Currently FA has 25 partner VSD sites that are offering service via appointments and they expect to expand that reach by another 33 sites in 2017. To ensure this service strategy is meeting the needs of the customers trying to resolve complex tax issues, a survey will be conducted with taxpayers who schedule an appointment at a VSD partner site.

2. Purpose and Use of the Information Collection

The VSD point of service survey will measure taxpayers’ satisfaction with the VSD service offered as well as resolution, willingness to use this service channel in the future, and the VSD appointment experience. This information will be used to ensure that VSD is meeting the needs of taxpayers who are using the service. Information collected from the point of service customer satisfaction survey will be used to provide meaningful feedback to managers and staff for FA. This survey will assist in assessing overall customer satisfaction and overall quality for balanced measures.

3. Consideration Given to Information Technology

The VSD point of service survey is a paper survey and will be offered to taxpayers at the conclusion of their VSD appointment.

4. Efforts Not to Duplicate Research

This survey will provide valuable information that is not available in any internal IRS data source. This is the only survey currently proposed for taxpayers who make an appointment at a VSD location.

5. Reducing the Burden on Small Entities

No small entities are involved in this study.

6. Consequences of Not Conducting Collection

FA would be unable to meet corporate goals and would fall short of meeting the IRS Mission of a Balanced Measurement System. Failure to approve this program of research would adversely affect the ability to compare results and determine where customer satisfaction improvements are needed.

7. Special Circumstances

There are no special circumstances. The information collected will be voluntary and will not be used for statistical purposes.

8. Consultations with Persons outside IRS

No consultation with persons outside of IRS.

9. Payment of Gift

There will be no payments for participants of the point of service VSD survey that takes less than 5 minutes.

10. Confidentiality

All participants will be subject to the provisions of the Taxpayer Bill of Rights II during this study and the vendor will ensure that all participants are treated fairly and appropriately.

The security of the data used in this project and the privacy to the extent allowed by law of taxpayers will be carefully safeguarded at all times. Security requirements are based on the Computer Security Act of 1987 and Office of Management and Budget Circular A-130, Appendices A & B. Physical security measures include a locked, secure office. Notes are stored in locked cabinets or shredded. Data security at the C-2 level is accomplished via the Windows NT operating system. Systems are password protected, users profiled for authorized use, and individual audit trails generated and reviewed periodically.

The IRS will apply and meet fair information and record-keeping practices to ensure privacy protection of all taxpayers to the extent allowed by law. This includes criteria for disclosure—laid out in the Privacy Act of 1974, the Freedom of Information Act, and Section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code—all of which provide for the protection of taxpayer information as well as its release to authorized recipients.

Participants will not be identified in any of the documents or files used for this project. We will limit and control the amount of information we collect to those items that are necessary to accomplish the research questions. We will carefully safeguard the security of data utilized as well as the privacy to the extent allowed by law of the survey respondents. We will apply the fair information and record-keeping practices to ensure protection of all survey respondents. The criterion for disclosure laid out in the Privacy Act, the Freedom of Information Act, and section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code provides for the protection of information as well as its releases to authorized recipients.

11. Sensitive Nature

No questions will be asked that are of a personal or sensitive nature.

12. Burden of Information Collection

The VSD point of service survey has a total annual burden estimate of 110 hours. The estimated time to complete the survey is five minutes and a 25 percent response rate is assumed. We expect to invite 4,192 potential participants (20 second recruitment) of which 1,048 taxpayers are expected to respond to the survey. The contact time to determine non-participation is included in the 20 second recruitment.

Point of Service Survey Estimate
Point of Service Survey	Participation	Time (minutes per person)	Total Burden (in hours)
Potential Respondents (invited)	4,192	20 seconds	23
Survey Respondents	1,048	5 minutes	87
Total Annual Estimate			110

13. Costs to Respondents

There is no cost to respondents resulting from the collection of information.

14. Costs to Federal Government

$1500 for printing and shipping

15. Reason for Change

This is a new survey.

16. Tabulation of Results, Schedule, and Analysis Plans

Research will use the results of the point of service survey to present customer satisfaction, issue resolution, key themes, areas of taxpayer interest, suggestions for improvement, and proposed changes to VSD service delivery at the completion of data collection.

17. Display of OMB Approval Date

IRS is seeking approval to not display the expiration date for OMB approval, as this is a one-time, limited-duration collection.

18. Exceptions to Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions

These activities comply with the requirements in 5 CFR 1320.9.

19. Dates collection will begin and end

January 1, 2017 through April 30, 2017

B. STATISTICAL METHODS

The primary purpose of these collections will be for internal management purposes; there are no plans to publish or otherwise release this information.

1. Universe and Respondent Selection

The sampling frame consists of taxpayers who make an appointment at a VSD partner location. To minimize burden, the survey will be offered every other day that the VSD sites are open.

2. Procedures for Collecting Information

Every other day the VSD sites are operating, customers who schedule an appointment at a VSD site will be offered to complete the paper point of service survey after their VSD interaction. The on screen IRS representative will invite taxpayers using the following script. Script: You have been selected for an anonymous IRS improvement survey. It will take under five minutes to complete. Would you like to participate in this voluntary survey? If YES, Thank you. Please pick up a survey from [location]. When you are finished please return it to [location].

3. Methods to Maximize Response

The VSD point of service survey will be offered as a paper survey to taxpayers who visit a partner location for VSD service. This survey will inform taxpayers that their participation will help the IRM improve its services.

4. Testing of Procedures

The surveys are designed based on established and tested customer satisfaction survey instruments.

5. Contacts for Statistical Aspects and Data Collection

For questions regarding the study or questionnaire design or statistical methodology, contact:

Althea Fulton

Wage and Investment, Strategies and Solutions, Research Group 1

Social Scientist

401 W Peachtree Street

Atlanta, GA 30308

470-639-3118

[email protected]

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