part30-1
- 30.1.1.1
Office of Chief Counsel Mission - 30.1.1.2
The Chief Counsel Directives Manual - 30.1.1.3
Strategic and Program Plan
This section describes the mission of the Office of Chief Counsel,
and provides policy and procedures relating to the effective operation of
the Chief Counsel organization.
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The mission of the Office of the Chief Counsel is to serve America’s
taxpayers fairly and with integrity by providing correct and impartial interpretation
of the internal revenue laws and the highest quality legal advice and representation
for the Internal Revenue Service. -
This mission encompasses providing the correct legal interpretation
of the internal revenue laws, representing the IRS in litigation, and providing
all other legal support needed by the IRS to carry out its mission of serving
America’s taxpayers. In carrying out these responsibilities, Counsel
must interpret the law with complete impartiality so that the American pubic
will have confidence that the tax law is being applied with integrity and
fairness.
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The Chief Counsel Directives Manual (CCDM), parts 30 through 39 of the
Internal Revenue Manual, is the authoritative statement of policy and guidance
for the IRS Office of Chief Counsel on matters covered herein. -
While some parts and sections of the CCDM may contain specific procedures
or processes, it is neither designed nor intended to be a comprehensive checklist
or “how to”
guide for every action or process. Step-by-step
guides or operating instructions may be developed outside of the CCDM, where
appropriate. The principal intent of the CCDM is to clearly and concisely
reflect Chief Counsel policy and guidance on critical functions for the effective
operation of the Chief Counsel organization.
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In some cases, the Office of Chief Counsel follows IRS policy and procedures,
such as for travel. For all Personnel Policy, since the Office of Chief Counsel
is part of the Legal Division of the Department of the Treasury, our policies,
guidance, and procedures may differ from those of the IRS. -
Where the Office of Chief Counsel, as a matter of policy, has elected
to adopt an IRS policy, guidance, or procedures on a particular matter, then
the pertinent section of the CCDM shall state that the Chief Counsel expressly
adopts and incorporates that specific IRS policy, guidance, or procedure.
For those sections, any change to IRS policy will automatically change Office
of Chief Counsel policy. -
Where an Office of Chief Counsel policy may be substantively the same
as that for the IRS, but the Chief Counsel has elected not to expressly adopt
and incorporate IRS policy, the Chief Counsel policy in the CCDM will be stated
without reference to the parallel IRS policy. For those sections, any change
to IRS policy will not affect Office of Chief Counsel policy on that particular
matter, unless the Chief Counsel expressly decides to approve a change.
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All Associate Chief Counsel and Division Counsel offices are responsible
for ensuring that the CCDM reflects the current policies, guidance, and procedures
of the Office of Chief Counsel. Designated Associate Chief Counsel or Division
Counsel offices will be responsible for monitoring the currency of its assigned
CCDM parts and ensuring that they are updated in a timely fashion. The Office
of the Associate Chief Counsel (Finance and Management) will be responsible
for processing changes and physically updating the CCDM as requested by the “Part Manager.”
Because provisions of the CCDM affect many different
organizations, the Part Manager will not have exclusive control of all substantive
elements of its assigned part. Rather, the role of the Part Manager will be
to identify the need for changes, coordinate the changes with the affected
or interested organizations, finalize the changes, and forward them to Associate
Chief Counsel (F&M) for the purpose of updating the CCDM. -
The CCDM Parts will be managed by the following organizations:
Part Title Managed By 30 Administrative Associate Chief Counsel (F&M) 31 Guiding Principles Associate Chief Counsel (P&A) 32 Published Guidance and Other Guidance to Taxpayers Associate Chief Counsel (P&A) 33 Legal Advice Associate Chief Counsel (P&A) 34 Litigation in District Court, Bankruptcy Court, Court of Federal Claims,
and State CourtAssociate Chief Counsel (P&A) 35 Tax Court Litigation Associate Chief Counsel (P&A) 36 Appellate Litigation and Actions on Decision Associate Chief Counsel (P&A) 37 Disclosure Associate Chief Counsel (P&A) 38 Criminal Tax Associate Chief Counsel (CT) 39 General Legal Services Associate Chief Counsel (GLS) -
The Associate Chief Counsel (F&M), through the Planning and Finance
Division, is responsible for the administrative maintenance and processing
of all CCDM changes. This includes processing all changes provided by the
Part Managers for the Manual, and ensuring that the current version of the
CCDM is published, electronically and otherwise, in accordance with IRS policy.
The Associate Chief Counsel (F&M) will coordinate updates through the
IRS Service-wide Policy Directives and Electronic Research (SPDER) organization
and will issue procedures within the Office of Chief Counsel that describe
the process by which the CCDM must be updated. For detailed information, see
CCDM 30.2.1, Office of Chief Counsel Directives System http://publish.no.irs.gov/getpdf.cgi?catnum=29706.
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The Planning and Finance Division will maintain a historical record
of all versions of the CCDM. -
Electronic versions of the CCDM are available through:
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The IRM Numerical Index http://publish.no.irs.gov/pubsys/irm/numind.html
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The SPDER Historical IRM Library http://oldirm.web.irs.gov/onesource/
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The Strategic and Program Plan (SPP) outlines the major objectives for
the Office of Chief Counsel. The SPP is the key means for the Office of Chief
Counsel to communicate its goals and measures, objectives, and strategies
throughout the organization. Accomplishment of these objectives is reported
through the IRS Business Performance Review process. -
The SPP is a multiyear strategic plan that sets the general direction
for Office of Chief Counsel’s efforts while paralleling and supporting
the Commissioner’s strategic planning efforts. Each year guidance for
the Strategic Planning, Budgeting & Performance Management cycle is provided
by the Strategic Planning & Budgeting Division of the Office of the Chief
Financial Officer. Coordination efforts occur between the Associate Chief
Counsel or Division Counsel and the Deputies Chief Counsel. The planning process
operates over multiple fiscal years, and begins each year in the second quarter
of the fiscal year. This process includes updating the strategic and program
plan for the upcoming fiscal year. For example, strategic planning for FY
06 and updating the FY 05 plan began in the second quarter of FY 04.
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The Office of Chief Counsel’s primary strategic focus is to maximize
its service to its principal client, the Internal Revenue Service. The Lead
Strategies, supported by specific goals and objectives identified in the SPP,
represent what the Office is striving to achieve and how the Office will judge
its success, both qualitatively and quantitatively. The Lead Strategies through
FY 2005 include:-
Increase Published Guidance
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Combat Promoted Tax Schemes and Abusive Tax Avoidance Transactions
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Enhance Legal Support for All IRS Units
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Manage the Litigation Program Effectively
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Attract and Retain Highly Qualified Attorneys
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The Strategic and Program Plan process serves as a framework for developing
senior management involvement and guidance. It also provides for greater integration
between planning, budgeting, and performance accountability mechanisms. -
In addition to providing their own input and discussion into the Strategic
and Program Plan, senior executives work closely with their IRS customers
(the four IRS operating divisions, IRS functional units, and IRS headquarters
activities) to incorporate their ideas concerning their future direction and
priorities. -
The Chief Counsel reviews accomplishment of the Strategic and Program
Plan through the IRS Business Performance Review process.
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The Planning and Finance Division in the Office of Associate Chief Counsel
(F&M) initiates strategic planning for the Office of Chief Counsel by
working with each Associate Chief Counsel or Division Counsel to develop the
SPP based on the Commissioner’s Plan, new priorities, and interviews
with executives. The Planning and Finance Division:-
Distributes the drafts
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Collates comments from senior executives
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Coordinates budget formulation issues
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Provides staff support at the SPP sessions of the strategic executive
meetings -
Ensures that the Plan is published each fiscal year and included on the
Office of Chief Counsel’s web page
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At the beginning of each fiscal year, each Associate Chief Counsel and
Division Counsel develops a Performance Plan (or LD 4) and an Operational
Plan that translates the broad SPP objectives into specific objectives for
that year. Specific performance measures are coordinated between the Associate
Chief Counsel or Division Counsel and the Deputies Chief Counsel to ensure
that they support both the goals of the SPP and overall management goals of
the Chief Counsel. The Associate Chief Counsel or Division Counsel Operational
Plans also propose the standards by which performance of the goals will be
measured. -
The performance measures and standards are documented in a formal agreement
called the LD-4 that is signed by the Deputies Chief Counsel and the respective
Associate Chief Counsel or Division Counsel. Each Associate Chief Counsel
and Division Counsel is accountable for the accomplishment of the objectives
in their performance plan and for the business results stated in his or her
operational plan that is one part of the LD-4 agreement. Additional elements
in the LD-4 are approved by the Deputies Chief Counsel.
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Each Associate Chief Counsel and Division Counsel is responsible for
insuring that their goals are incorporated into the performance plans of their
subordinate SES and Grade 15 managers, positions, and organizations.
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Assessments are written at the middle and end of the fiscal year by
Associate Chief Counsel and Division Counsel to document their performance
in accomplishing their operational plans and major objectives from their LD-4s.
The final appraisals, performed by the Deputies Chief Counsel, rely on the
Associate Chief Counsel and Division Counsel SES assessments. These are supplemented
by statistics gathered by the Planning and Finance Division.
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The Planning and Finance Division, under the direction of the Associate
Chief Counsel (Finance and Management) assists the goal-writing process by
drafting Operational Plans based on guidance from new directives and priorities
established by the Chief Counsel. It distributes drafts, collates comments,
and provides staff support at executive meetings until the objectives are
finalized. The Planning and Finance Division also collects and analyzes statistical
data to assist in the self-assessment process.
