Promoting economy, efficiency, and effectiveness in administering the nation’s tax system.

Detecting and preventing fraud, abuse, and deficiencies in IRS programs and operations.

Offering recommendations about existing and proposed legislation and regulations related to IRS programs and operations.

Ensuring compliance with applicable laws and regulations.

Informing the Secretary of the Treasury and Congress of problems and the progress the IRS is making to resolve them.

Evaluating how well government policies and programs are working.

Auditing agency operations to determine whether federal funds are being spent efficiently and effectively.

Investigating allegations of illegal and improper activities.

Issuing legal decisions and opinions.

Serving as the Servicewide single point of contact (SPOC) for GAO and TIGTA audits and inspections and evaluations.

Liaising between the IRS and GAO and TIGTA when addressing significant issues that arise during an audit.

Providing guidance and support to business units on the audit process, including post audit tracking and monitoring of planned corrective actions (PCAs).

Identifying audit stakeholders and assigning audit ownership, based on input from the business units.

Transmitting audit notifications, engagement letters, draft reports, final audit reports, or other audit-related documents to the appropriate offices.

Providing input to the business units as they develop responses to audit reports.

Monitoring the timeliness of IRS audit responses to ensure due dates are met.

Updating and maintaining the Enterprise Audit Database that documents and makes available important information about each open audit..

Elevating significant issues, concerns, audit findings, or related matters through the management chain to appropriate IRS leadership for information and action.

Retaining audit records per appropriate records retention requirements issued by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). See the IRM 1.15 series, Records and Information Management.

Facilitating audits throughout the audit lifecycle, from audit initiation through the reporting phases and post-audit tracking and monitoring of PCAs.

Monitoring the status of PCAs, validating the documentation submitted by business units to close PCAs, and ensuring record keeping via the Joint Audit Management Enterprise System (JAMES) once the final audit reports are issued.

Facilitating the 180-Day Letter approval process with the business units, including routing the 180-Day Letter package to the Deputy Commissioners or Commissioner for signature and mailing the 180-Day Letter responses to Congress.

Establishing the e-Trak control for 180-Day Letters upon the issuance of the final report by GAO and providing it to EAM for tracking.

Act as the primary point of contact for LB&I during the open audit process and track all research projects and audit inquiries from auditors.

Review TIGTA and GAO audit documents forwarded from EAM, such as engagement letters and audit reports and prepare transmittals to guide the appropriate offices within and outside LB&I (for cross-functional audits) on what actions are needed.

Forward engagement letters, briefings or audit reports, and any other audit-related documents such as inquiries received from TIGTA or GAO to the appropriate offices within and outside LB&I to request responses and status updates.

Schedule and facilitate LB&I pre-audit briefings for new LB&I lead audits before the opening conference.

Schedule and participate in audit openings, progress updates, midpoint briefings and closing conferences for assigned LB&I audits.

Participate at opening and closing conferences for assigned non-lead audits.

Answer inquiries, provide guidance, and resolve problems encountered during the open audits from managers, other audit liaisons, and functional coordinators.

Encourage the executive owner(s), and program manager(s) for each audit attend the opening conference to adequately address concerns with the audit objectives early in the audit process and the closing conference to provide comments about the recommendation(s) before TIGTA or GAO issues the draft report.

Help ensure timely management responses to auditors' inquiries and draft audit reports by answering or forwarding inquiries to the appropriate functional coordinators.

Monitor the Information Document Request (IDR) for the audit which includes audit inquiries and responses.

Review responses to draft audit reports before forwarding them for approval.

Maintain a SharePoint database to track the open audit inventory and keep detailed information on the audit progress.

Act as liaison between management and TIGTA or GAO on the resolution of problems encountered during the open audits.

Coordinate draft management responses until they have been signed and closed in e-Trak.

Prepare a signature package template with the review timeline for management responses and forward it to the functional coordinator.

Create SharePoint folders for each open audit and upload key documents, such as the engagement letter, discussion draft report, draft report, management response to the draft report, final report, and 180-Day Letters (only upon request from the audit lead).

Brief executives on the status of the open inventory (e.g., through the quarterly Business Performance Review (BPR) and audit inventory reports).

Act as the primary point of contact for their functional area during the audit process.

Be familiar with IRMs related to the disclosure of taxpayer information to TIGTA and GAO and the accounting and reporting of this information to the Disclosure Office.

Forward engagement letters, audit reports, and any other audit-related documents received from the LB&I audit liaison to the appropriate offices within and outside their functional area, as needed, to request responses and status updates.

Participate in audit openings, research, progress updates, and closing conferences.

Serve as or identify a note-taker for each of the conferences above and share meeting notes with the LB&I audit liaison within three business days.

Maintain the IDR for the audit which includes audit inquiries and responses.

Monitor all audit planning and audit inquiries from auditors to ensure that responses are timely.

Review audit-related documents received from the LB&I audit liaison or audit teams, such as inquiries received and request for comments on audit reports, and coordinate with the appropriate offices within and outside their functional area, such as other functional coordinators in LB&I and audit liaisons outside LB&I, as needed.

Collect responses, review for completeness and forward responses to the audit liaison for submission to TIGTA or GAO.

Respond to inquiries or audit reports to the director or executive owners for the audits. Secure the necessary reviews and approvals from the management chain before submitting responses to requesters (e.g., auditors, LB&I audit liaison, or audit liaisons from another lead stakeholder organization).

Keep the executive owner, designee, and applicable program manager(s) abreast of audit developments to address concerns, as deemed necessary.

Answer inquiries from managers in their area about the status of the assigned open audits.

Act as liaison between management and LB&I audit liaison on the resolution of problems encountered during the open audits.

Act as liaison between functional area management and audit teams to clarify audit inquiries and request extension of due dates during the fieldwork phase.

Ensure the executive owner (e.g., director or designee) and program manager(s) for each audit attend the opening, research, progress update, and closing conferences to address concerns in the audit process dealing with potential audit findings and recommendations.

Assist the designated executive owner or program manager(s) in their area with the timely preparation and coordination of comments or responses to discussion drafts (TIGTA) or statements of facts (GAO), draft reports, and GAO final reports with recommendations.

Share copies of approved report comments and responses to draft reports and 180-day letters with the audit liaison by the due date provided.

Ensure that the director or program manager for the audit seeks concurrence from the audit team during the closing meeting on revisions to the discussion draft or statement of facts audit reports.

Help ensure timely management responses to draft audit reports by promptly assisting the program managers with the drafting of the management responses, coordinating comments received from managers within and outside their functional area and forwarding initial draft management response to the appropriate managers (e.g., senior manager, director) for review and comments before forwarding the draft responses by the given due dates to the LB&I audit liaison for additional review and processing.

Review management responses prepared by their functional area for proper format, sentence structure, and grammar before submitting to audit liaison.

Maintain files on each open audit with related documents, including the engagement letter, audit reports, and management responses to the draft reports.

Forward periodic or monthly audit inventory reports with pertinent managers in their functional area, as deemed appropriate by the functional area.

Identify the appropriate SME(s). The SME’s name(s) should be provided to the functional coordinator and the audit liaison.

Become familiar with the issues addressed during the open audit and in discussion draft reports (TIGTA) or statements of facts(GAO).

Participate in audit openings, progress updates, and closing conferences and stay involved in the audit process.

Answer auditors’ inquiries and provide documents as requested during the audit, preferably through the functional coordinator and the audit liaison. If direct submission to TIGTA and GAO is required, the functional coordinator and audit liaison should be copied.

Stay in contact with the auditors during the audit to ensure the audit is progressing smoothly, request audit progress updates from TIGTA or GAO audit team and share updates with the functional coordinator and audit liaison.

Reach an agreement with the audit team on early findings, recommendations, and any monetary benefits in discussion draft reports (TIGTA) or statements of facts (GAO), and draft reports.

Provide written comments on discussion draft reports (TIGTA) or statements of facts (GAO) for the audit through the functional coordinator and the audit liaison.

Ensure timely responses to auditors' inquiries and discussion draft reports (TIGTA) or statements of facts (GAO) by promptly providing the information requested and starting to write management responses when the audit team issues the preliminary audit report.

Identify and coordinate cross-functional issues within and outside LB&I during the drafting of management responses to ensure adequate coordination when developing responses to the discussion draft reports (TIGTA) or statements of facts (GAO) and draft audit reports.

Recommend the adoption or rejection of audit recommendations based on strategic LB&I goals and objectives by assessing the merits of the recommendations and potential corrective actions based on their effect on the LB&I division's business goals, priorities, and resources available for implementation.

Develop practical corrective action plans for audit recommendations, including establishing realistic implementation dates.

Prepare management responses to draft reports for executive approval and ensure the audit reports provide accurate information.

Review management responses prepared by their functional area for proper format, sentence structure, and grammar before the functional coordinator submits to the audit liaison.

Provide periodic updates on the progress of open audits to the audit liaison through the functional coordinator.

Bring audit concerns to the attention of the executive owner of the audit, the functional coordinator and the audit liaison.

Become familiar with the open audits assigned to their functional area.

Designate an LB&I program manager within their functional area for each audit to coordinate the audit work within and outside LB&I.

Attend audit pre-opening, opening, mid-point and closing conferences, and stay involved in the audit process as needed.

Ensure the area assumes a proactive approach during the audit process (e.g., brief the auditors early in the audit process on the programs under review, submit timely and substantive responses throughout the process).

Work with the audit team to reach an agreement on early findings or recommendations in discussion draft reports (TIGTA) or statements of facts (GAO).

Help resolve any cross-functional issues.

Review, approve and sign responses to draft audit reports.

Brief the LB&I commissioner and deputy commissioners on their audits, as needed.

Determine which audit recommendations to implement.

Determine the availability of critical internal and external stakeholders.

Schedule the virtual opening conference with TIGTA or GAO and coordinate the meeting with affected functions within and outside LB&I, as needed.

Solicit names, as listed in the Address Directory in Outlook, of important participants from all impacted BOD stakeholders.

Attach the engagement letter/study notification along with any other relevant correspondence (e.g., initial IDR) to the meeting invitation.

Send an invitation to the stakeholders, functional coordinators and essential participants. Invite them to forward as deemed appropriate.

Facilitate the opening conference.

Date of disclosure

Name of agency receiving the information

Purpose of the disclosure (i.e., disclosure authority under IRC 6103(f)(4)(A))

The category (IMF or BMF) and number of taxpayers involved in the disclosure

Description of the document(s) disclosed

ADP source code (128 for Business Master File taxpayers)

Location of the IRS office retaining a copy of the documents disclosed

Type of documents disclosed (1 for tape extracts and 2 for all other disclosures)

Email the statement of facts, discussion draft report, or draft report to appropriate functional coordinator and cross-BOD audit liaisons (if appropriate) for distribution to their pertinent director, executive assistant and program manager.

Request stakeholder review and provide written comments on the audit report by a specific due date before the internal closing conference.

Schedule the internal closing conference call and coordinate the meeting with appropriate stakeholders within and outside LB&I.

Coordinate the closing meeting with the TIGTA or GAO audit team, appropriate LB&I stakeholders, and cross-BOD stakeholders (outside LB&I) to schedule the external closing conference call.

Ensure appropriate executives attend the closing conference to provide an opportunity to address their concerns with the audit findings and recommendations.

Include EAM and Legislative Affairs in the invitations to all milestone conferences.

Facilitate the closing conference.

Adequate understanding of the program audited.

Accurate, relevant, and current facts.

Perspective on the extent and significance of negative findings reported.

Sufficient evidence to support the findings and recommendations.

Balanced tone, especially on titles and headings.

Connection between audit objectives, audit findings, and conclusions.

Conclusions and recommendations based on the facts presented.

Coordinate with functional areas within and outside LB&I, as needed, when drafting the management response.

Consolidate and review comments gathered for the management response.

Draft the response using the response template prepared and provided by the audit liaison and follow the writing guidelines provided.

Forward the draft response to the audit liaison by the due date provided in the response timetable.

A positive tone.

Introductory paragraph acknowledging the report. (A "thank you" statement is not necessary as an introduction.)

Agency message or LB&I "story" (one or two paragraphs) addressing the issue(s) covered in the report and presenting a positive picture of what LB&I has generally done to address the significant issues(s).

An attachment outlining the corrective action plan for each recommendation identifying responsible officials and the estimated implementation date for each action.

A statement of agreement or disagreement is not necessary in the response.

Include a statement indicating agreement or disagreement for all monetary benefits reported, if any, in the body of the memo.

Legislative mandate – Must LB&I implement the recommendations based on compliance with an existing law, rule, or regulation? If so, managers should adopt the recommendations.

Duplication – Is LB&I already doing what the audit team recommends? If so, a new corrective action is not needed. Managers should provide information on what has been done or is in the process of being done to address the recommendations and the source of duplication (e.g., Federal Managers' Financial Integrity Act (FMFIA) Action Plan).

Modernization plans – Are recommendations part of a current modernization effort? If so, managers do not have to provide new corrective actions. Instead, managers should provide information on the specific modernization plans addressing the recommendations.

Cost/benefit factors – Are the resources available to implement the recommendations? Do they make good business sense? If not, managers should let auditors know why the recommendations are not cost effective or why they do not make good business sense.

Vetted the draft response with the executive owner for the audit (e.g., director) and other managers involved in the development of the response within and outside of LB&I before submitting the draft response to the audit liaison.

Used the proper response format or template the audit liaison provided.

Addressed findings and recommendations in the draft report.

Provided an estimated implementation date or completed date for each corrective action (for TIGTA draft reports).

Listed a responsible official for each corrective action (for TIGTA draft reports).

Followed the recommended writing guidelines.

Addressed the outcome measures in the draft report (TIGTA), if any.

Ask managers to provide any missing information and edit the draft response.

Request an extension of the response due date from the TIGTA or GAO audit team, if needed.

Follow service guidelines for the proper review by PBS and LB&I officials.

Forward the signature package, including the final draft response electronically to the ALL team manager for routing to PBS, LB&I commissioner, and DCSE Offices.

LB&I lead stakeholder to audit liaison (PBS)

Audit liaison to PBS senior management and EAM

PBS to LB&I commissioner

LB&I commissioner to DCSE

DCSE back to LB&I commissioner

LB&I commissioner to audit liaison

Audit liaison to TIGTA by 5:00 p.m. (EST) on the requested response date

Forward a clear scanned copy of the signed response to the TIGTA mailbox by email.

Send a copy of the signed response to the TIGTA audit manager and the TIGTA senior auditor for the audit.

Share a copy of the signed response with EAM, pertinent managers and audit liaisons within and outside LB&I, as needed.

Develop and forward a management response template and response timetable to pertinent LB&I functional coordinator and audit liaisons in other business units to facilitate the drafting of the 180-Day Letter.

Ensure that the e-Trak correspondence control system is updated to show the progress of the 180-day congressional response delivered to reviewers and finally signed.

Review the 180-Day Letter and coordinate any necessary changes with the pertinent program manager(s) and/or functions involved.

Share a preliminary copy with EAM and Legislative Affairs.

Prepare the signature package and forward the 180-Day Letter (the same letter is addressed to the House of Representatives and the Senate committees) for review and approval to ALL, TPS, PBS management and the LB&I commissioner.

Submit the 180-Day Letter package to Legislative Affairs for review at least five days before the management response is due.