1.1.18 Research, Analysis and Statistics Division

1.1.18.1 (12-07-2005)
Research, Analysis and Statistics Division

  1. The mission of Research, Analysis, and Statistics Division is to anticipate and satisfy customer needs by providing leading research, analytical, and technology services.
  2. The Director, Research, Analysis, and Statistics Division reports to the Commissioner of Internal Revenue and is responsible for oversight and coordination of the activities of the:
    1. National Research Program (NRP) Office
    2. National Headquarters Office of Research
    3. Office of Program Evaluation and Risk Analysis (OPERA)
    4. Office of Servicewide Policy, Directives and Electronic Research (SPDER)
    5. Statistics of Income (SOI)
  3. Exhibit 1.1.18-1 contains a current organizational chart for the Research, Analysis and Statistics Division. See Exhibit 1.1.18-1.
  4. To accomplish its mission, Research, Analysis, and Statistics Division provide strategic Servicewide research, analysis, studies, and support to internal and external stakeholders, including:
    1. IRS Senior Management Team
    2. Operating Division research and operational organizations
    3. Other NHQ support units
    4. External stakeholders, including Treasury, OMB, Congress and other tax administration agencies.
  5. The Director:
    1. Serves as a member of the Commissioner’s leadership team to ensure coordinated, responsive, and cost-effective services to the Senior Leadership Team and operating divisions in strategic planning and performance management.
    2. Develops and maintains relationships with key internal and external stakeholders, to identify their research and analysis needs, evaluate quality of research and analysis services provided, and identify actions which may be required to continuously improve research processes, redeploy research resources, etc., to meet such needs.
    3. Plans and directs the efficient, effective use of research and analysis staff resources, including identifying unit staff training and development needs; overseeing the design, conduct, and assessment of research staff training and development programs; and serving as a mentor and coach to staff.
  6. Research, Analysis, and Statistics Division plans, directs, and oversees five major areas of activity:
    1. Conducts strategic research and analysis and research not limited to a single operating division but critical to the Service, overall. This includes various types of research, econometric modeling, forecasting, compliance studies, analysis of proposed legislative initiatives, and strategic program evaluations;
    2. Provides IRS-wide leadership in the design, development and maintenance of research and analysis databases and infrastructure;
    3. Provides functional leadership, guidance and support to the IRS research community on research standards and practices, to ensure consistency, comparability and quality;
    4. Coordinates the design, development and maintenance of IRS internal management documents, processes and systems; and
    5. Provides taxpayer data to the Treasury Department’s Office of Tax Analysis (OTA) and other agencies through the Statistics of Income Division.

1.1.18.1.1 (12-07-2005)
National Research Program Office

  1. The mission of the National Research Program (NRP) Office is to design and implement systems and studies that will produce timely, reliable information about the filing of tax returns, the reporting of income, deductions, taxes and credits, and the payment of tax liabilities. The information is a Servicewide resource that will support a variety of user needs including the development of strategic plans and customer-focused programs, products and services.
  2. The Director, National Research Program, reports to the Director, Research, Analysis, and Statistics Division and is responsible for planning, managing, directing and executing the full range of information systems and compliance studies.
  3. The responsibilities of the Program NRP Office include:
    1. Coordinating the design and implementation of systems and studies to collect taxpayer compliance data and other related data.
    2. Developing and implementing communication strategies to ensure that objectives, status, and results of studies are communicated to all internal and external stakeholders.
    3. Developing program monitoring mechanisms to promote effective and efficient implementation and delivery of studies and to identify and mitigate risks.
    4. Providing regular briefings to the NRP Executive Steering Committee on the progress of studies to ensure high-level awareness of issues and to solicit decisions, when needed.
    5. Coordinating the delivery of data from systems and studies to user organizations.
    6. Developing user guides and other documentation to promote customer satisfaction with the data.
    7. Developing and implementing internal measures that balance customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction, and business results.

1.1.18.1.2 (12-07-2005)
Office of Research

  1. The mission of the Office of Research is to provide decision-makers with high quality data, analyses, research, and technology-based business solutions they can use to plan, evaluate, and improve federal tax administration and to support the IRS research community in a manner that maximizes its effectiveness.
  2. The Director, Office of Research reports to the Director, Research, Analysis, and Statistics Division and is responsible for planning, managing, directing, and executing the full range of programs and projects for the Office of Research.
  3. The responsibilities of the Office of Research include conducting cross-functional, technically-challenging, servicewide, strategic research and analysis projects that are often long-term. The office employs a wide variety of economic, statistical, and operations research methods and advanced technologies. The Office also provides technical and conceptual expertise on joint projects with other research units in the IRS.
  4. The Office develops research tools, techniques, methodologies, analyses, and models for tax administration use, including the following:
    1. Providing measures of the degree of compliance for different types of taxes and taxpayers.
    2. Developing, maintaining, and advising on methods for selected taxpayers and issues for enforcement contact and for allocating IRS resources.
    3. Developing news ways of identifying abusive tax avoidance transactions.
    4. Providing measures of the compliance burdens imposed on taxpayers by the tax law and tax administration.
  5. The Office of Research provides data and performs analyses in support of ongoing and future IRS activities, including the following:
    1. Projections of workload volumes and enforcement revenues.
    2. Developing, updating, and maintaining databases for internal use and for other IRS users and providing data for external customers. These databases pertain to tax return information and to enforcement results.
  6. Logistical support is provided for various activities within the IRS Research Community, e.g. training, the Servicewide Research Council, and annual research conferences.

1.1.18.1.3 (12-07-2005)
Office of Program Evaluation and Risk Analysis

  1. The mission of Office of Program Evaluation and Risk Analysis (OPERA) is to provide the IRS Senior Management with accurate and timely analysis of ongoing and proposed IRS programs and investments to support quality, data-driven strategic thinking and decision making across the organization.
  2. The Director, OPERA reports to the Director, Research, Analysis, and Statistics Division and is responsible for supporting senior IRS management’s efforts to develop effective Servicewide strategies to achieve the Service’s mission, vision, goals, and values.
  3. To accomplish the mission, the Director, OPERA:
    1. Develops and implements internal OPERA measures that balance customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction, and business results.
    2. Conducts enterprise-wide studies in support of the Commissioner’s Office/Senior Leadership, Operating Divisions, Support Divisions, and Functional Divisions. These studies involve programs, activities, and/or operations, which could imperil the Service’s achievement of its strategic goals. These studies are performed in collaboration with subject matter experts from the effected units.
    3. Manages the enterprise-wide risk analysis efforts for the Service, including performing analysis of major investments.
    4. Supports the Strategic Planning and Budget process by providing analytical support to the Commissioner’s Office/Senior Leadership and Strategic Planning and Budgeting (SP&B) as necessary throughout the entire strategic planning cycle.
  4. Program Analysis assesses the investment potential of existing and proposed programs aligned with the IRS mission and strategic goals, which is accomplished by:
    1. Analyzing existing and proposed programs and activities;
    2. Performing cost/benefit analyses;
    3. Evaluating methodologies;
    4. Performing process mapping/process analysis; and
    5. Providing customers with desired analyses and products.
  5. Risk Analysis assesses risks to the accomplishment of strategic objectives as well as opportunities for mitigating and managing risks, which is accomplished by:
    1. Assessing risk identification processes especially for enterprise-wide risks;
    2. Defining the issues, scope, and timeframe for reviews;
    3. Ascertaining the effectiveness of solutions and ensuring that identified risks have been mitigated to acceptable levels;
    4. Assessing processes for mitigating and managing risks;
    5. Cultivating partnerships with Strategic Planning and Budgeting and Business Systems Modernization Executive;
    6. Utilizing the risk management processes, models, and methodologies; and
    7. Providing customers with desired analyses and products.

1.1.18.1.4 (12-07-2005)
Office of Servicewide Policy, Directives and Electronic Research

  1. The Office of Servicewide Policy, Directives and Electronic Research (SPDER) manages corporate delivery of tax administration tools such as the Internal Revenue Manual (IRM), commercial electronic research, and the IRS Historical Library.
  2. The Director of SPDER reports to the Director, Research, Analysis, and Statistics Division and is responsible for maintaining an IRS strategic direction to provide employees with the tax, legal, and internal directives tools through which taxpayers can be assured fair and consistent treatment.
  3. This is accomplished through the following strategies:
    1. Establish and manage Service policy for the internal directives process and electronic research requirements of the agency.
    2. Promote the IRM as the authoritative source for all IRS policies, procedures, guidelines and delegations. This includes directing a strategy to incorporate division and functional information products, procedural desk guides, training materials, etc. into the IRM.
    3. Maintain, enhance, and support the delivery of the web-based, searchable, IRM Online, while at the same time explore future architectures best suited for integration of IRS knowledge assets.
    4. Provide guidance and assistance to managers and executives regarding Treasury directives, position titles, and official organizational charts.
    5. Assist in developing appropriate delegations of authority to ensure accountability and get decision making as close to the customer as possible, and to ensure a consistent workflow.
    6. Manage and maintain the historical library for the IRM and organizational studies.
    7. Maintain and update the servicewide responsibility matrix.
  4. The SPDER Office sets agency policy and direction for maintaining the IRM as the official source for all authorities, policy, procedures, and directives by:
    1. Designing an IRM that supports major business”processes ” rather than functional programs using an established standardized authoring procedures and software for the IRM;
    2. Reviewing all delegation orders and policy statements prior to signature by approving official;
    3. Delivering a robust, searchable electronic IRM; and
    4. Developing IRM and IMD training, and working with divisions and functions to include it in their training plans.
  5. To manage the corporate delivery of standardized commercial electronic research services, the SPDER office:
    1. Maintains corporate oversight of electronic research services (both tax, legal, and public records);
    2. Manages national contracts for tax and legal research services;
    3. Coordinates national electronic research requirements for research services;
    4. Chairs the Electronic Research Oversight Council;
    5. Facilitates the rollout of electronic research services; and
    6. Develops electronic research training and works with divisions and functions to include it in their training plans.
  6. The IRS Historical Library houses a collection of historical materials that document the agency’s internal operating procedures and policies and its organizational structure. This collection allows for historical research of the Internal Revenue Manual and the studies that led to organizational changes in the structure of the Agency.

1.1.18.1.5 (12-07-2005)
Statistics of Income Division

  1. The mission of Statistics of Income (SOI) is to collect, analyze, and disseminate information on federal taxation for the Treasury Department’s Office of Tax Analysis, Congressional Committees, the Internal Revenue Service in its administration of the tax laws, other organizations engaged in economic and financial analysis, and for the general public.
  2. To accomplish the mission, the SOI provides statistical data to be used strictly in accordance with, and subject to, the limitations of the disclosure provisions of the Internal Revenue Code. The data are derived from Federal tax forms for economic and financial research, development of Federal tax policy, and revenue estimation, for internal and external stakeholders, including:
    1. Office of Tax Analysis (OTA), Department of Treasury
    2. U.S. Congressional Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT)
    3. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA)
    4. Other IRS Operating Divisions
    5. Other tax administration agencies
  3. The Director, Statistics of Income (SOI) reports to the Director, Research, Analysis, and Statistics Division and is responsible for planning, managing, directing, and executing the full range of programs and projects in four branches: Individual Statistics, Corporation Statistics, Special Studies, and Statistical Computing.
  4. The Individual Statistics, the Corporation Statistics, and the Special Studies branches are subject-matter based and collectively produce statistical data on individual tax returns, business tax returns (including multi-national corporations and foreign-owned corporations), and foundations, charitable trusts, and other tax-exempt organization. Each subject-matter branch:
    1. Produces publications of federal tax statistics.
    2. Produces publications of the operation and effectiveness of the tax system.
    3. Prepares special statistical studies on a reimbursable basis as requested.
    4. Manages Fed/State exchange or inter-agency liaison activities accordingly.
    5. Represents the Division at inter-agency councils and other professional organizations.
  5. The Special Studies Branch, in addition to producing statistical data, is responsible for the public dissemination of Federal tax statistics. To this extent, the Special Studies Branch:
    1. Manages production of the SOI Bulletin, the SOI methodology report series, and the IRS Data Book.
    2. Manages the SOI Internet World Wide Web site.
  6. SOI manages their own systems and database administration for the SOI National Office LAN, SOI Intranet, and the SOI 500 N. Capitol St. I/T Infrastructure. The Statistical Computing Branch provides technical support by:
    1. Designing statistical samples for all SOI studies.
    2. Coordinating and monitoring the sample selection operations to ensure data integrity.
    3. Providing direction for delivering statistical expertise and consulting services to SOI program areas and other external customers, including sample design, imputation, and estimation procedures.
    4. Designing measurement systems for other IRS functions.
    5. Acting as competent authority for SOI Information Technology and advising the SOI Director in all matters relative to SOI I/T operations.
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