Taxpayer Bill of Rights Enhancement Act of 2017

Taxpayer Bill of Rights Enhancement Act of 2017

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to provisions affecting taxpayer rights, to:

• increase penalties for unauthorized disclosure or inspection of taxpayer information and allow punitive damages for willful unauthorized inspection or disclosure;
• prohibit the disclosure of taxpayer information to any contractor or other agent of a governmental entity without confidentiality safeguards;
• increase the limit on civil damages for unauthorized collection actions by Internal Revenue Service (IRS) employees and allow punitive damages for reckless or intentional actions;
• extend to two years the time limit for contesting a tax levy or for seeking a return of wrongfully levied property;
• waive user fees for taxpayers who agree to automated installment payments;
• allow amounts that have been wrongfully levied from retirement accounts to be recontributed without regard to contribution limits;
• modify the requirements and exceptions that apply to payments of estimated taxes;
• require the disclosure of collection activities relating to a joint account upon the oral request of either spouse (currently, a written request is required); and
• require tax-exempt organizations to file their tax returns in electronic form.

The IRS must maintain a program that provides free tax preparation and electronic filing services to low-income and elderly taxpayers.

The bill amends the Internal Revenue Service Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998 to require at least one IRS appeals officer and one settlement officer to be located and permanently available in each state, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.