The IRS Advisory Council issued its 2025 Annual Report on January 14, 2026, recommending changes to tax administration across IRS operations, taxpayer service and compliance. The document, released as IR-2026-07, addresses 29 issues.
The report ranges from public communication and website design to excise-tax payment processing.
IRS Chief Executive Officer Frank J. Bisignano said the council had examined tax administration and the agency’s transformation work. He said the IRS would review its findings.
“IRSAC members have devoted significant time and expertise to analyzing complex tax administration and the transformation work underway across the IRS. We appreciate their thoughtful recommendations, and we look forward to reviewing the insights provided in the 2025 report.”
The recommendations concern IRS administration, not new tax rules
The council advises the IRS commissioner and executive leadership. Its members provide a public forum on current or proposed agency policies, programs and procedures.
Its membership represents taxpayers, tax professionals, small and large businesses, tax-exempt and government entities, the payroll industry and academia. The council operates under the Federal Advisory Committee Act and is administered by the IRS Office of National Public Liaison.
Five subgroups divide the work: Information Reporting; Large Business & International; Small Business/Self-Employed; Tax Exempt and Government Entities; and Taxpayer Services.
The general section sets six priorities for IRS operations
The report’s general section reviews progress on earlier recommendations and sets out six areas for agency attention:
- Funding for IRS operations: Promote the agency’s achievements and make the case for investment to help close the tax gap.
- Public education about the IRS mission: Strengthen community engagement and address misinformation about IRS operations.
- IRS websites: Improve search, add more language translations and provide a link on each page for reporting errors.
- Accounting method change requests: Address how the IRS handles these requests.
- Online tax services: Make digital services simpler to use.
- Form 730 and excise-tax payments: Improve processing in this area.
The report gives the public-education recommendation a broad scope: it calls on the IRS to explain its role in the country and counter misinformation about its operations. The website proposals pair easier searching and more translations with a way for users to flag errors.
The subgroup proposals span reporting, small business and taxpayer service
The Information Reporting Subgroup addresses large-business address changes, identity theft and account takeover fraud. It also recommends considering a de minimis threshold for reconciling Form 1042 and Form 1042-S, and examines the character and source of staking income. Its other topics include raising the information-reporting threshold for slot-machine jackpot winnings and responding to changed electronic-filing requirements.
The Large Business & International Subgroup recommends modernizing Form 1065, the U.S. Return of Partnership Income. It also addresses administration of penalties under IRC §§ 6038 and 6038A.
Small Business/Self-Employed recommendations include broadening and promoting settlement programs. Supplement A proposes a domestic voluntary disclosure program for non-willful taxpayers without reasonable cause; Supplement B proposes a website summary of that program.
The subgroup also recommends stronger digital tools for taxpayer engagement, more alternative dispute resolution and a larger pool of eligible mediators. Other proposals include proactive prompts to encourage small-business voluntary compliance and more tax-literacy resources for owners.
Tax Exempt and Government Entities calls for updated guidance on what counts as an “essential government function” for tribal governments. It also raises the cost to exempt organizations of using the private letter ruling process, implementation of the Saver’s Match, and consistent definitions for identical terms used in unrelated business income tax and real estate investment trust rules.
Taxpayer Services recommends improvements to the Centralized Authorization File process and access to all data from electronically filed Form 1040 returns. Its other subjects include amended-return processing times, social media for service and compliance, support before and after launches, and live chat for tax professionals.
The report includes regulatory comments and names its chairs and members
An appendix collects comment letters submitted during 2025. They address proposed regulations on practice before the IRS under Circular 230, expanding enrolled-agent continuing education to include practice management, and proposed rules on the source of income from cloud transactions.
Christine Freeland chaired the council in 2025; Lucinda Weigel is its 2026 chair. The report names its members.
They are Grace Allison, Robert Barr, Joseph Bender, Pablo Blank, Andrew Bloom, Selvan Boominathan, Elizabeth Boonin, Caroline Bruckner, Beatriz Castaneda, Samuel Cohen, Kendra Cooks, Omeed Firouzi, Christine Freeland, David Gannaway, Jared Goldberger, Steven Grieb, David Heywood, Manuela Markarian, Charles Markham, Anthony Massoud, Mark Matkovich, Susan Nakano, Sarah Narkiewicz, Annette Nellen, Adam Robbins, Brayan Rosa-Rodriguez, Larry Sannicandro, Tralynna Scott, Peter Smith, Cory Steinmetz, Hussein Tarraf, Kristofer Thiessen, Rolanda Watson, Lucinda Weigel, Thomas Wheadon, Brian Yacker and Nick Yannaci.
The IRS says the public report and additional council information are available through IRS.gov and its IRSAC page.
