TEI Members Commended for Helping IRS.

Four members of TEI and a member of the Institute's staff have been commended by the Internal Revenue Service for participating in an IRS task force on improving the role of specialist in the Coordinated Examination Program. The task force, which commenced worked in April 1998, recently completed work on a comprehensive report that is reprinted in this issue of The Tax Executive. Please refer to the report for a detailed description of the task force's work and the numerous meetings that were held, including several involving TEI members from throughout the country.

The TEI representatives on the IRS Customer Satisfaction Task Force on Specialists were led by Stephen W. Boocock of Allegheny Teledyne, who recently completed a two-year term as chair of the Institute's IRS Administrative Affairs Committee. He was joined by three other members of the committee -- T. Norman Bush of Fort James Corporation, Lonnie F. Nicol of Alcoa Inc., and David R. Seltzer of Hewlett-Packard Company -- as well as Timothy J. McCormally, TEI's General Counsel and Director of Tax Affairs.

Each member of the TEI group received a formal certificate of recognition from the IRS, which was signed by Thomas W. Wilson, Jr., Assistant Commissioner (Examination). In forwarding the certificates, Mr. Wilson wrote the following about the group:

[Each TEI representative's] contributions were invaluable to the success of the task force. He interacted in multi-level Internal Revenue Service (IRS) environment of National Office staff personnel, upper level to front level managers, and bargaining unit employees, obtaining knowledge of IRS processes and making positive recommendations for change. It was necessary for...