Did you know you have an advocate with the IRS who is directed, by law, to represent your interests when the IRS oversteps its boundaries when dealing with you? Yes, indeed, you do. The problem is that the IRS doesn’t heed the law when it comes to taking your personal facts and circumstances into account.

Nina Olsen, your taxpayer advocate, heads up the entire Taxpayer Advocate Program. I have bumped up against her staff of Advocates several times in the last year trying to get those Advocates to keep the IRS from taking adverse action against you such as seizing your wages and bank accounts and filing tax liens against you not to mention violating the requirement of allowing taxpayers their allowable deductions, in full, when computing minimum payment requirements on Installment Payment Agreements. I have often had IRS collectors refuse to allow an Installment Payment Agreement because the taxpayer we represented got so impacted by the down economy that they couldn’t meet the payments on their prior Installment Agreement. Not only that, but they were often arrogant in the process without any compassion or empathy for the circumstances the taxpayers were in.

Nina Olsen, herself, in her report to Congress sent this week, cited 20 deficiencies by the IRS with regard to how they treat taxpayers. Perhaps her organization would be more effective if she insisted they truly represent your interests instead of siding with the IRS as they did in every instance for which I sought their help in 2009.

Let’s see how the IRS responds. My guess is they won’t change their ways until Congress forces them to.