Last month (January of 2026), the National Taxpayer Advocate (Erin Collins) issued her annual report to Congress on the IRS' performance in key metrics like tax support. Unfortunately, there was not much good news.

Over a quarter of the IRS workforce has been cut since the third week of January 2025 (just over one year ago). Perhaps it is no surprise then, and in considering a strategic mandate to reduce the tax gap, that even as the IRS takes its own cuts they are plowing any available funds into enforcement. This is a big issue as there are not only fewer people working on updating regulations and form instructions and the like, but also fewer people available to help with tax support. In fact, during 2025, the number of CSRs available to help answer tax support calls was reduced by 22%, with those remaining having less experience than those released. 

Another big problem was the IRS response to these measures. During 2025, the IRS routed about 35 million calls to new voicebot technology. Needless to say people calling in for tax support guidance were not satisfied with the voicebots. Only half of callers found the voicebots remotely helpful, and most callers wanted to speak with human CSR's (who were simply not available). Even there, in FY 2025, the IRS received over 70 million calls, with only about 19 million of those calls answered. Worse yet, even when callers were able to reach a CSR, resolution of the issue being called upon was hardly guaranteed.

Poor telephone service thus creates a cycle of frustration and inefficiency. When you call with a 1099 question and that issue is not resolved during a call, then you must call back, send correspondence, or seek assistance elsewhere. This increases your burden because the simple fact of the matter is that if you have a fact-and-circumstance based 1099 reporting question, then you have not much better than a coin flip's chance of getting through to someone. 

In the face of such tepid support we stand ready to help Accounts Payable, Tax, independent CPA's, and other tax professionals get timely answers to your Form 1099, 1042-S, and State level reporting questions. Please don't hesitate to check out our subscription options this filing season.