Controlled Pilot Project on Tax Returns Compliance Program

November 14, 1966 REVENUE MEMORANDUM ORDER NO. 68-66 SUBJECT : Controlled Pilot Project on Tax Returns Compliance Program TO : The Regional Director of Regional Office No. 4, Chief Revenue Officers of Inspection Districts Nos. 20 and 21 and Others Concerned In accordance with the program of this Office to modernize tax administration in the Bureau of Internal Revenue thereby increasing tax collections, a Controlled Pilot Project on Tax Returns Compliance will be undertaken in Inspection Districts Nos. 20 and 21 of Regional Office No. 4, to test procedures intended for long-range implementation in the areas of investigation and assessment. The program is expected to foster the highest degree of voluntary compliance; raise the level of tax consciousness of the people in order to make it easier for them to comply with their tax obligations; and to gather data which may be used in developing an effective means to close the tax gap. All the fieldmen in the above-mentioned Inspection Districts shall be utilized in the Controlled Pilot Project along the same organizational and functional lines as presently constituted. The schedule for accomplishing the project shall be as follows: 1. Gathering data Nov. 16, 1966 to Dec. 15, 1966 2. Processing of data Dec. 16, 1966 to Jan. 15, 1967 3. Assignments of non-filers Jan. 16, 1967 to March 31, 1967 for field canvass 4. Evaluation of project April 1, 1967 to April 30, 1967 Under the above-mentioned schedules, the examiners shall first be utilized in gathering data from various sources, which shall be collated and processed so that a taxpayer will have under his name all the data gathered from the various sources, appearing in his name. To facilitate the gathering of data, examiners will be divided into groups under a group supervisor and given specific assignments to accomplish. After the data has been collated, it shall be checked against the list of filers in the district; then re-checked against the filers in the region and ultimately by the Data Processing Center against the list of filers throughout the country. With this procedure the list is purged of those taxpayers who filed returns and what will remain are the non-filers only. The final list of non-filers shall then be returned to the district concerned and assigned to the fieldmen for field contact. Appropriate procedures, forms and instructions shall be issued in detail to serve as guidelines for the pilot project. To insure the success of the Pilot Project, a National Coordinator representing the National Office, Regional Coordinator representing the Regional Office and District Coordinator representing the Inspection District shall be appointed and who shall be charged with the implementation of the various aspects of the Pilot Project. cdtech This Memorandum Order shall become effective immediately. MISAEL P. VERA Commissioner of Internal Revenue