OMG.
The guidance coming down from the IRS is from bizarro world.
In the volunteer income tax assistance program, we are supposed
to have in the past had two posters posted. One was entitled
"Your Civil Rights". That poster has been removed from the
IRS website.
In addition, all our clients have to complete an intake sheet.
The sheet lists the demographic information we need to
complete a return: Name, address, phone #, dependents,
marital status. Also, inside it references to the types of
income or expenses that a client may have.
Last year, the IRS added that a client could circle or
indicate their preferred pronouns. That would be nothing
in the return, but we could use that if we needed to contact
a client with questions or when referring to the client.
We are to cross that reference off.
In addition, the IRS is no longer allowed to collect ethnic
background data on clients we serve. Again, not that it
was entered on a return. But the IRS wanted to ensure that
we did not discriminate against any clients. (I never
asked the question, if our clients never bothered to complete
the information. Most just want to know "how much do
I owe or what is my refund?"
Another document we were to have is labeled:
Privacy, Confidentiality, and Civil Rights.
Again, the apparent dastardly reference to "civil rights".
It ain't available on the IRS website and we for now
no longer need to have it available to help us determine
how best to serve our clients in those regards.
Probably more coming down the pike.
As Looney Tunes would say:
That's All Folks!
Although apparently more sh*t to come.
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