Low Income Taxpayer Clinic Grant Program; Availability of 2014 Grant Application Package, 27436-27437 [2015-11567]

Agencies

• Internal Revenue Service
• DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 92 (Wednesday, May 13, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27436-27437]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-11567]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Internal Revenue Service


Low Income Taxpayer Clinic Grant Program; Availability of 2014 
Grant Application Package

AGENCY: Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Treasury.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This document contains a notice that the IRS has made 
available the 2016 Grant Application Package and Guidelines 
(Publication 3319) for organizations interested in applying for a Low 
Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC) matching grant for the 2016 grant year, 
which runs from January 1, 2016, through December 31, 2016. The 
application period runs through June 15, 2015.
    The IRS will award a total of up to $6,000,000 (unless otherwise 
provided by specific Congressional appropriation) to qualifying 
organizations, subject to the limitations of Internal Revenue Code 
section 7526. For fiscal year 2015, Congress appropriated a total of 
$10,000,000 in federal funds for LITC grants. A qualifying organization 
may receive a matching grant of up to $100,000 per year for up to a 
three-year project period. Qualifying organizations that provide 
representation to low income taxpayers involved in a tax controversy 
with the IRS or educate individuals for whom English is a second 
language (ESL) of their taxpayer rights and responsibilities under the 
Internal Revenue Code are eligible for a grant. Beginning in grant year 
2016, the LITC Program will award grants only to qualifying 
organizations that provide both services. An LITC must provide services 
for free or for no more than a nominal fee.
    Examples of qualifying organizations include: (1) A clinical 
program at an accredited law, business or accounting school whose 
students represent low income taxpayers in tax controversies with the 
IRS, and (2) an organization exempt from tax under I.R.C. Sec.  501(a) 
whose employees and volunteers represent low income taxpayers in tax 
controversies with the IRS.
    In determining whether to award a grant, the IRS will consider a 
variety of factors, including: (1) The number of taxpayers who will be 
assisted by the organization, including the number of ESL taxpayers in 
that geographic area; (2) the existence of other LITCs assisting the 
same population of low income and ESL taxpayers; (3) the quality of the 
program offered by the organization, including the qualifications of 
its administrators and qualified representatives, and its record, if 
any, in providing assistance to low income taxpayers; and (4) 
alternative funding sources available to the organization, including 
amounts received from other grants and contributions, and the endowment 
and resources of the institution sponsoring the organization.

DATES: The IRS is authorized to award a multi-year grant not to exceed 
three years. For an organization not currently receiving a grant for 
2015, or an organization whose multi-year grant ends in 2015, the 
organization must submit the application electronically at

[[Page 27437]]

www.grants.gov. For an organization currently receiving a grant for 
2015 which is requesting funding for the second or third year of a 
multi-year grant, the organization must submit the funding request 
electronically at www.grantsolutions.gov. All organizations must use 
the funding number of TREAS-GRANTS-052016-001, and applications and 
funding requests for the 2016 grant year must be electronically filed 
by June 15, 2015. The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance program 
number is 21.008. See www.cfda.gov.

ADDRESSES: The LITC Program Office is located at: Internal Revenue 
Service, Taxpayer Advocate Service, LITC Grant Program Administration 
Office, TA:LITC, 1111 Constitution Avenue NW., Room 1034, Washington, 
DC 20224. Copies of the 2016 Grant Application Package and Guidelines, 
IRS Publication 3319 (Rev. 5-2015), can be downloaded from the IRS 
Internet site at www.irs.gov/advocate or ordered by calling the IRS 
Distribution Center at 1-800-829-3676.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The LITC Program Office at (202) 317-
4700 (not a toll-free number) or by email at LITCProgramOffice@irs.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    Section 7526 of the Internal Revenue Code authorizes the IRS, 
subject to the availability of appropriated funds, to award qualified 
organizations matching grants of up to $100,000 per year for the 
development, expansion, or continuation of qualified low income 
taxpayer clinics. A qualified organization is one that represents low 
income taxpayers in controversies with the IRS or informs individuals 
for whom English is a second language of their taxpayer rights and 
responsibilities, and does not charge more than a nominal fee for its 
services (except for reimbursement of actual costs incurred). The IRS 
may award grants to qualified organizations to fund one-year, two-year, 
or three-year project periods. Grant funds may be awarded for start-up 
expenditures incurred by new clinics during the grant year.

Mission Statement

    Low Income Taxpayer Clinics ensure the fairness and integrity of 
the tax system by educating low income taxpayers about their rights and 
responsibilities, by providing pro bono representation to taxpayers in 
tax disputes with the IRS, by conducting outreach and education to 
taxpayers who speak English as a second language, and by identifying 
and advocating for issues that impact low income taxpayers.

Selection Consideration

    Applications that pass the eligibility screening process will 
undergo a two-tier evaluation process. Applications will be subject to 
both a technical evaluation and a Program Office evaluation. The final 
funding decision is made by the National Taxpayer Advocate, unless 
recused. The costs of preparing and submitting an application (or a 
request for continued funding) are the responsibility of each 
applicant. Each application and request for continued funding will be 
given due consideration and the LITC Program Office will notify each 
applicant once funding decisions have been made.

Nina E. Olson,
 National Taxpayer Advocate, Internal Revenue Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-11567 Filed 5-12-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4830-01-P