Internal Revenue Service Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ==Administrative functions== [[File:Figure 1 IRS Appropriations for Fiscal Years 2000 to 2019 (49395060466).jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|IRS appropriations, 2000β2019{{legend|#870f18|Nominal appropriations}}{{legend|#0c4d8f|Adjusted for inflation}}]] The IRS publishes [[IRS tax forms|tax forms]] which taxpayers are required to choose from and use for calculating and reporting their federal tax obligations. The IRS also publishes a number of forms for its own internal operations, such as Forms 3471 and 4228 (which are used during the initial processing of income tax returns). In addition to collection of revenue and pursuing tax cheaters, the IRS issues administrative rulings such as [[revenue ruling]]s and [[private letter ruling]]s. In addition, the Service publishes the [[Internal Revenue Bulletin]] containing the various IRS pronouncements.<ref>{{cite web|title=Internal Revenue Bulletin: 2012β23|url=https://www.irs.gov/irb/2012-23_IRB/ar08.html|publisher=Internal Revenue Service|access-date=June 7, 2012|date=June 4, 2012}}</ref> The controlling authority of regulations and revenue rulings allows taxpayers to rely on them. A letter ruling is good for the taxpayer to whom it is issued and gives some explanation of the Service's position on a particular tax issue.<ref name="irs.gov">[https://www.irs.gov/irm/part3/irm_03-028-003.html Internal Revenue Manual Section 3.28.3].</ref> Additionally, a letter ruling reasonably relied upon by a taxpayer allows for the waiver of penalties for underpayment of tax. As is the case with all administrative pronouncements, taxpayers sometimes litigate the validity of the pronouncements, and courts sometimes determine a particular rule to be invalid where the agency has exceeded its authority. The IRS also issues formal pronouncements called Revenue Procedures. These guide taxpayers through different processes, such as correcting prior tax errors. The IRS's own internal operations manual is the [[Internal Revenue Manual]], which describes the clerical procedures for processing and auditing tax returns for almost any circumstance. For example, the Internal Revenue Manual includes special procedures for processing tax returns from the President and [[Vice President of the United States]].<ref name="irs.gov"/> In addition to the foregoing procedures, the IRS also engages in formal rulemaking in order to provide its own formal interpretation of a statute, or when the statute itself directs that the [[United States Secretary of the Treasury|Secretary of the Treasury]] shall provide for such rulemaking. The IRS initiates the formal regulation process by publishing a [[notice of proposed rulemaking]] (NPRM) in the [[Federal Register]] which announces the proposed regulation, the date of the in-person hearing, and the process for interested parties to have their views heard either in person at the hearing in Washington, D.C., or by mail. Following the statutory period provided in the [[Administrative Procedure Act (United States)|Administrative Procedure Act]] the Service decides on the final regulations "as is", or as reflecting changes, or sometimes withdraws the proposed regulations. Generally, taxpayers may rely on proposed regulations until final regulations become effective. For example, human resource professionals are relying on the October 4, 2005, Proposed Regulations<ref>[http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20051800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2005/pdf/05-19379.pdf A257.g.akamaitech.net] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060723033049/http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20051800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2005/pdf/05-19379.pdf |date=July 23, 2006 }} (PDF)</ref> (citation 70 [[Federal Register|F.R.]] 57930β57984)<ref>[http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20051800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2005/05-19379.htm Federal Register (Volume 70, Number 191)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060819222326/http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20051800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2005/05-19379.htm |date=August 19, 2006 }}, ''October 4, 2005''</ref> for the Section 409A on deferred compensation (the so-called [[Enron]] rules on deferred compensation to add teeth to the old rules) because regulations have not been finalized. The IRS oversaw the Homebuyer Credit and First Time Homebuyer Credit programs instituted by the federal government from 2008 to 2010. Those programs provided United States citizens with money toward the purchase of homes, regardless of income tax filings.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.irs.gov/uac/First-Time-Homebuyer-Credit-1|title=First-Time Homebuyer Credit |website=Internal Revenue Service}}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page