USA. Internal Revenue Service. - Confessions of a tax collector: one mans tour of duty inside the IRS

HarperCollinsPublishers

Confessions of A Tax Collector. Copyright 2004 by Richard Yancey. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. For information, address HarperCollins Publishers Inc., 10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022.

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FIRST EDITION

Designed by Laura Lindgren

Printed on acid-free paper

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.

ISBN 0-06-055560-2

04 05 06 07 08 /RRD 10 98765432 1

For the Revenue Officers

This book would not exist if not for the real people who occupy its pages. They were more than coworkers during my time with the Service. They were also my friends. I have struggled to portray them accurately and to the best of my recollection. Much time has passed since those days. Memory fades, but not the fondness I have for all of them. God bless and Godspeed.

I am extraordinarily fortunate to have Marjorie Braman, vice president and executive editor at HarperCollins, as my editor. Perceptive, empathetic, an enthusiastic lover of stories well told, she has been coach, cheerleader, and most avid fan throughout the entire process. All writers should be as lucky.

Brian DeFiore, my agent, advocate, and guide, championed the book. Always positive, but with stern pragmatism, he never hesitated in the early days of this project to take up my banner and recklessly charge up the hill.

I thank my three boys, who endured my mood swings and evening absences with grace, understanding, and patience. A father could not ask for better sons.

There are not enough words in the language to express my gratitude to my wife. I am convinced there is no one on the face of the planet with more courage, honesty, or unselfish devotionparticularly toward this most difficult of husbands. Brian charged up the hill, but she was ever the light on top of it, guiding me home.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1:

CHAPTER 2:

CHAPTER 3:

CHAPTER 4:

CHAPTER 5:

CHAPTER 6:

CHAPTER 7:

CHAPTER 8:

CHAPTER 9:

CHAPTER 10:

CHAPTER 11:

CHAPTER 12:

CHAPTER 13:

CHAPTER 14:

No name in this book, with the exception of my own, belongs to anyone I know. I have changed the names of all other characters and have altered their personal appearances and histories. I have taken particular pains to protect the identities of those taxpayers with whom I dealt during my years of service, changing appearance, occupation, and, in some circumstances, gender.

I have also taken liberties with the arrangement of incidents, for clarity and to facilitate the narrative flow. I did not keep contemporaneous notes of my conversations with taxpayers, coworkers, or any other persons. I have relied on my own memory, such that it is, to reconstruct conversations. Throughout, however, I have striven to record the spirit of what was said, if not the actual words.

The Service is the largest civilian employer in the federal government. To claim that my experiences are common to all within it would not only be grossly inaccurate but monumentally unfair. This is the story of one employee among the thousands who serve.

JIM NEYLAND, Grade 14 Branch Chief, Tampa Branch, Jacksonville District, Southeast Region

BETH, Grade 12 Revenue Officer, Lakeside post-of-duty

GINA TATE, Grade 13 Supervisory Revenue Officer (Group Manager), Lakeside post-of-duty

MELISSA CAVANAUGH, Grade 12 Revenue Officer and On-the-Job Instructor, Lakeside post-of-duty

HENRY, Grade 11 Revenue Officer, Lakeside post-of-duty Allison, Grade 7 Revenue Officer Trainee, Lakeside post-of-duty

RACHEL, Grade 7 Revenue Officer Trainee, Lakeside post-of-duty Dee, Grade 7 Revenue Officer Trainee, Lakeside post-of-duty

CAROLINE, Grade 7 Revenue Officer Trainee, Lakeside post-of-duty

TOBY PETERSON, Grade 12 Revenue Officer and Union Steward, Lakeside post-of-duty

CINDY SANDIFER, Grade 12 Revenue Officer and On-the-Job Instructor, Lakeside post-of-duty

BONNY, Grade 5 Group Clerk, Lakeside post-of-duty

BRYON SAMUELS, Grade 15 Collection Division Chief, Jacksonville District, Southeast Region

SAM MASON, Grade 12 Revenue Officer and lead instructor, RO Basic Training, Tampa post-of-duty

LARRY SIMON, Grade 12 Offer-in-Compromise Specialist and Basic Training Instructor, Panama City post-of-duty

WILLIAM CULPEPPER, Grade 12 Revenue Officer and On-the-Job Instructor, Lakeside post-of-duty

JENNY DUNCAN, Grade 13 Supervisory Revenue Officer (group manager) and Acting Branch Chief, Orlando Branch

HOWARD STEVENS, Grade 13 Special Agent-in-Charge, Criminal Investigation Division, Tampa post-of-duty

BOB CAMPBELL, Grade 14 Branch Chief, Orlando Branch, Jacksonville District, Southeast Region

FRED NEWBERRY, Grade 12 Occupational Development Specialist, Jacksonville District

ANNIE DEFLORIO, Grade 13 Supervisory Revenue Officer (group manager), Orlando and (later) Lakeside post-of-duty