    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1998, Book I)]
    [June 19, 1998]
    [Page 994]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Statement on Internal Revenue Service Reform Legislation
    June 19, 1998

        I am very pleased that our efforts to reform the IRS took a major
    step forward today with a bipartisan agreement reconciling the House and
    Senate legislation. I have worked very hard to give the American people
    an IRS that is fairer and more responsive to their needs. Enactment of
    this compromise reform will build on our initiative to give Americans a
    modern, customer-friendly IRS.
        Our new IRS Commissioner, Charles Rossotti, has brought forceful leadership and the best management
    techniques from the private sector to the agency. This bipartisan
    compromise will give him the tools he needs to succeed, while expanding
    taxpayer rights. It will allow the IRS to bring in talent and expertise
    from the private sector, strengthen the Taxpayer Advocate's office, and
    expand the convenient and popular practice of filing tax returns
    electronically and over the phone. We are pleased that Congress
    incorporated the Commissioner's sweeping reorganization of the IRS along
    customer service lines and addressed our concerns about earlier versions
    of this reform by correcting provisions that would have inadvertently
    allowed noncompliant taxpayers to avoid paying their fair share of
    taxes. The Congress also made sure that the Treasury Secretary and the
    IRS Commissioner will serve on the board overseeing the IRS.
        Under the leadership of the Vice President and Secretary Rubin, we have
    made great strides in our efforts to revamp customer service at the IRS.
    We have expanded phone and office hours, created popular new problem-
    solving days, and launched independent citizen advocacy panels. We
    cannot solve every problem at the IRS at once, but we are committed to
    correcting problems when they arise, and this bill will help us do that.
    I urge Congress to send me this compromise legislation quickly, but to
    make sure that it is fully and properly funded.