- 8 -
entire IRS Appeals function would be independent. Internal
Revenue Service Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998, Pub. L.
105-206, sec. 1001(a), 112 Stat. 689. The Commissioner then made
the guarantee of impartiality part of the IRS’s standard
operating procedure by issuing Revenue Procedure 2000-43, 2000-2
C.B. 404. This procedure prohibits ex parte communications by
IRS employees that would appear to compromise the independence of
an Appeals officer.
Through a series of questions and answers, the Commissioner
explains which types of communications he regards as prohibited
ex parte contacts. Rev. Proc. 2000-43, sec. 3, 2000-2 C.B. at
405. He begins with a general definition of ex parte
communications as those taking place between an Appeals officer
and another IRS employee in which the taxpayer does not have a
reasonable “opportunity to participate.” Id., Q&A-1 and Q&A-21,
2000-2 C.B. at 405, 408. He excludes the administrative file
from the definition of an ex parte communication because that
file explains what the dispute is about and establishes the
jurisdiction of IRS Appeals. Id., Q&A-4, 2000-2 C.B. at 405.
However, the procedure warns, communications with the
“originating function” (IRS-speak for an employee whose initial
determination the Appeals Office is reviewing) may only address
“ministerial, administrative, or procedural matters and [may] not
address the substance of the issues or positions taken in the
Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Next
Last modified: November 10, 2007