May 11, 2006:
Congress Reaches an Agreement on Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 2005
IRS Warns of Scammers
August 28, 2006
are several key elements of this program that will alert taxpayers they are part of this program and help other taxpayers from being scammed by impersonators:
• Taxpayer notification. All taxpayers who will be part of the private debt collection effort will know they are in the program before they are contacted by a private collection agency. If you haven’t previously heard that you’re in the program, be wary of any bill collectors saying they are working on behalf of the IRS.
• IRS letter. All participants selected for the program will get a letter from the IRS, telling them they’ve been selected for the private debt collection program. The name of the company will be included in the letter.
• Collection agency letter. All participants will subsequently receive a second letter, this one from the collection agency, informing the taxpayer they will be contacted soon regarding back taxes.
• Money collected. All checks will still be made payable to the U.S. Treasury — not to an individual or firm.
