Protecting Access to the Courts for Taxpayers Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. Speaker, American taxpayers fighting the Internal Revenue Service deserve their day in court. Not every taxpayer who thinks the IRS is wrong is right, but not every time the IRS brings a case are they right.

The Tax Court is a unique creation of Congress. It is, in fact, an article 1 court specifically created and dedicated to tax issues.

The Tax Court has the expertise necessary to hear complex or, in some cases, simple tax cases. Any situation in which a taxpayer is unable to contest an IRS action, therefore, would be simply unacceptable.

Unfortunately, the problem today is that, due to an oversight in the Federal law, you can find yourself in a situation, by filing in good faith, not to be able to use a Tax Court. Unlike the IRS, not all taxpayers know about the requirement to file tax disputes in the Tax Court. Some taxpayers, in good faith, file in their local district court, which is wrong, and by the time it is discovered, their opportunity to file in Tax Court has expired.

Today, when a Federal Tax Court judge recognizes the improper venue, under current law he is prevented from simply transferring the case to Tax Court, where it rightfully belongs. By the time this happens, the taxpayer usually has lost their day in court since they only have a short time in which to ask for the Tax Court.

Because of this oversight in the Federal law, I, along with the ranking member of the full Judiciary Committee, introduced the Protecting Access to the Courts for Taxpayers Act. The legislation, quite simply, fixes this error that impacts dozens and dozens of Americans repeatedly every year. It is supported by advocates in the Judicial Conference and the Tax Courts.

It just makes sense, Mr. Speaker, that, in fact, getting your day in court should not be nullified by an actual petition to a court erroneously not recognized in time. In any other case in which you file in Federal court, if the court determines it is not an appropriate venue, the case is transferred. This is a lone exception.

I want to thank my colleague from Georgia for his support in this legislation and for his help in making sure it was drafted accurately.

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