BU-16-437 ACSS Survey Instruments

Dear

I need your help with an important initiative I am undertaking to improve our service to America’s taxpayers. I want to get feedback from taxpayers like you who have recently received a notice informing you of a balance due or return delinquency on your tax return.

In a few days, you will receive a questionnaire asking your opinions about the collection process with the IRS. Please direct it to the person who had the most contact with the IRS on this matter. The questionnaire should take less than 5 minutes to complete. Your answers will be combined with others to give us an evaluation of customer satisfaction with IRS service.

The primary purpose for requesting this information is to help the IRS improve its service to taxpayers. Our authority for requesting the information is 5 USC and 26 USC 7801.

Providing information is voluntary. However, if you do not answer all or part of the survey questions, the IRS may lack information it could use to improve taxpayer service. The information you provide may be disclosed to an IRS contractor when authorized by law. The contractor is required to follow to the extent allowed by law protections required by the Privacy Act and/or Internal Revenue Code section 6103.

I am committed to improving IRS service to every taxpayer. Please help me in this effort by completing and returning the questionnaire as soon as possible. If you do not receive a questionnaire, please contact the Survey Helpline at 1-866-960-7897.

Sincerely,

DelRey Jenkins

Director, Campus Collection

L1_XXXXX

Dear

A few days ago, you received a letter from DelRey Jenkins, Director, Campus Collection, asking for your help with an important research project.

We are administering a nationwide survey among people who have had contact with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). We want to know your opinions about the collection process you went through which began with a notice informing you of a balance due or a return delinquency. Your responses are critical to the accuracy of this research.

We are sending questionnaires to a random sample of taxpayers who have gone through the collection process on a recent tax return. All responses will be anonymous to the IRS, and your participation is voluntary. We will group your responses with others, so that no individual reply can be traced back to any one person.

You may complete this survey either by mail or online. To complete it online, type the following link into your browser: http://www.xxxxxxx.com. Then enter your password.

Password:

Providing your password ensures that only those invited to take the survey can access it. We will not share your password with the IRS at any time during or after this study.

The questionnaire is quite brief and should take less than 5 minutes to complete. Please use the postage-paid reply envelope to return your completed questionnaire. If you have any questions about this survey, please feel free to call the Survey Helpline at 1-866-960-7897.

The IRS is committed to improving its performance and service to the American public. A first step in this process is to gather reliable information from those who have had contact with IRS services and employees. Your honest opinions will help bring about this improvement.

Sincerely,

Dr. Peter Webb

Project Director

L2_XXXXX

Do We Have Your Input Yet?

Recently, you received a questionnaire asking your opinions about the service you received from the IRS in a recent contact. If you have already completed and returned the questionnaire, please accept our sincere thanks. If not, please take a few minutes to complete it and return it today. We want to be sure we have your opinions and suggestions.

If you did not receive the questionnaire, or it got misplaced, please call us at 1-866-960-7897.

Dr. Peter Webb

Project Director

L3

Dear

A few days ago, you received a survey from DelRey Jenkins, Director, Campus Collection, asking for your help with an important research project. If you have already completed the survey, thank you. If you have not already done so, please take a few minutes to fill in your responses.

We are administering a nationwide survey among people who have had contact with the Internal Revenue

Service (IRS). We want to know your opinions about the collection process you went through which began

with a notice informing you of a balance due or a return delinquency. Your responses are critical to the

accuracy of this research.

We are sending questionnaires to a random sample of taxpayers who have gone through the collection process

on a recent tax return. All responses will be anonymous to the IRS, and your participation is voluntary. We

will group your responses with others, so that no individual reply can be traced back to any one person.

You may complete this survey either by mail or online. To complete it online, type the following link into your browser: http://www.xxxxxxxx.com. Then enter your password.

Password:

Providing your password ensures that only those invited to take the survey can access it. We will not share your password with the IRS at any time during or after this study.

The questionnaire is quite brief and should take less than 5 minutes to complete. Please use the postage-paid

reply envelope to return your completed questionnaire. If you have any questions about this survey, please feel

free to call the Survey Helpline at 1-866-960-7897.

The IRS is committed to improving its performance and service to the American public. A first step in this

process is to gather reliable information from those who have had contact with IRS services and employees.

Your honest opinions will help bring about this improvement.

Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Sincerely,

Dr. Peter Webb

Project Director

L4_XXXXX

ACSS Survey Questions (Converting current phone survey to mail survey).

1. Why did you send correspondence to IRS?

1. I received a phone call or telephone message from IRS

2. I incurred a bank or wage levy

3. I received a Notice of Federal Tax Lien

4. I received an IRS letter or notice

5. I did not send any correspondence to IRS

Please select from the following scale for questions 2 through 8: (Even though Q6 requires a different answer…the contractor should be able to format it so it works.)

1. Very Satisfied

2. Satisfied

3. Neither Satisfied nor Dissatisfied

4. Dissatisfied

5. Very Dissatisfied

2. Regardless of the outcome of your case, please rate your overall satisfaction with the service you received while corresponding with the IRS about your possible unpaid tax or late return.

3. Rate your satisfaction with how well the IRS explained their actions on why they did (or did not) accept the documents or explanations you provided.

4. Rate your satisfaction with the time you were given to respond to the IRS.

5. Rate your satisfaction with the consistency of information the IRS provided to you throughout the process.

6. Did you have any balance due? Yes or No

7. If you answered yes to question 6, please rate your satisfaction with how well the IRS letter explained your payment options.

8. Rate your satisfaction with how well the IRS letter explained the resolution of your case.

*****************************************************************************************

9. If you answered "Very Dissatisfied" or "Dissatisfied" to any of the above questions, please describe what caused you to feel that way? ________________________________________

For the next few questions, please answer by providing the number or answer that best matches your experience

10. When you were first notified that you might owe taxes or have an unfiled return, how many months did you expect it would take to resolve?

1. Less than 3 months

2. Less than 6 months

3. More than 6 months

11. What was the actual amount of time in months? ______ months

12. Rate your satisfaction with the length of time to complete the collection process (from Q11).

1. Very Satisfied

2. Satisfied

3. Neither Satisfied nor Dissatisfied

4. Dissatisfied

5. Very Dissatisfied

13. How well do you think the IRS process compares with an ideal process? Please use the following 5-point scale.

1. Very far from ideal

2. Far from ideal

3. Not far nor close to ideal

4. Close to ideal

5. Very close to ideal

Using the five point scale listed below, How much do you agree with the following statements? (For questions 14 and 15)

1. Strongly Disagree

2. Disagree

3. Neutral

4. Agree

5. Strongly Agree

14. I had the opportunity to provide information important to my case.

15. I was treated with respect during the process.

The next question is about how well the IRS met your expectations while sending and receiving letters about your possible unpaid taxes or late tax return.

16. Overall, how well did the IRS meet your expectations while handling this process?

1. Much better than expected

2. Better than Expected

3. As Expected

4. Worse than Expected

5. Much Worse than Expected

17. Do you have any suggestions or comments you would like to make to the IRS regarding how they could improve service during this latest contact? ____________________________________________________

Occasionally, we conduct additional in-depth IRS-related research. Research participants may receive a small monetary incentive to participate depending on the research. If you are interested in participating in future research, please provide us with your telephone number and your email address (if available). This information will not be shared with the IRS and will be used only for the purpose of survey research.

Telephone number: _______________________ Email address: ________________________________

The Paperwork Reduction Act requires that the IRS display an OMB control number on all public information requests. The OMB Control Number for this study is 1545-2250. Also, if you have any comments regarding the time estimates associated with this study or suggestions on making this process simpler, please write to the, Internal Revenue Service, Special Services Section, SE:W:CAR:MP:T:M:S, 1111 Constitution Ave. NW, Room 6129, Washington, DC 20224..