Mr. Hunt works closely with industry groups and tax practitioners to improve the delivery of service to small-business taxpayers. He has played a pivotal role in the IRS' modernization efforts. He served as an executive leader of the small-business/self-employed design team and as the executive director for modernization design and implementation during the latter stages of IRS modernization. Before joining the modernization effort, Mr. Hunt was the assistant director of the Atlanta service center.

Darien: Tax issues have always been a primary concern for the self-employed. Unfortunately, the IRS has not been known to be very helpful when dealing with these issues. However, the IRS has been undertaking new initiatives and modernization efforts. Can you discuss these efforts and how they will affect small-business and self-employed taxpayers?

Mr. Hunt: The redesign of the IRS was built with the following goals in mind: service to each taxpayer, service to all taxpayers and achieving productivity through a quality work environment. We are now structured around the taxpayer with special emphasis on their characteristics and needs.

The IRS has recently established a small-business/self-employed division. With this small-business division within the IRS, we are now positioned to focus on small-business issues. We have taken steps to reduce burden on taxpayers by changing guidelines in accounting practices, cash vs. accrual. We have also eliminated the requirement to file certain tax forms for small-business corporations that will save a significant amount of time. We've created educational tools, CD-ROMs, and established a Web site specifically for the tax needs of the self-employed small-business community. A major effort is our new focus on establishing partnerships with organizations that represent small-business taxpayer issues.

Darien: What have you found to be the top tax issues the self-employed have expressed concerns about in regards to the IRS and the tax code?

Mr. Hunt: The largest issue and one of most concern is the complexity of the tax code. Another has been tailoring ways to treat certain tax issues that might affect a large portion of small-business taxpayers based on the size of the business. Given the diversity of small-business, our focus is on helping small-businesses comply with the tax laws. We've made it possible for businesses to file and pay electronically. We are also looking at ways to simplify all forms and publications affecting small-businesses.

Darien: The complexity of the tax code makes it difficult for the self-employed to thoroughly understand their tax liability. What direct assistance does the IRS offer to small-business taxpayers to better alleviate their tax burden on federal and state levels?

Mr. Hunt: We've created The Small-Business Resource Guide CD-ROM and a virtual CD-ROM, Small-Business Workshop, tailored to meet the needs of a number of taxpayers. The latter has been produced in three languages, English, Spanish and Mandarin Chinese.

The Electronic Federal Tax Payment System, EFTPS, is designed for small-business taxpayers to make estimated tax payments and tax deposits for businesses with employees.

Through organizations like the National Association for the Self-Employed, we are hoping to establish a two-way communication channel that facilitates getting information for small-businesses as well as identifying issues that are important and need the attention of the IRS. This is only the beginning, and as future products are developed, we will use this two-way process to deliver these products.