The IRS announced its decision to consolidate paper tax return processing to two main centers—Kansas City, Missouri, and Ogden, Utah—in September 2016.
Key details regarding this decision and its timeline include:
Goal of Consolidation: The strategy aims to streamline operations and reduce costs as electronic filing rates increase, with plans to shut down other submission processing sites.
Timeline
of Closures:
Cincinnati,
OH: Consolidated in 2019.
Fresno,
CA: Processing ended in September 2021.
Austin,
TX: Planned to cease processing in September 2024.
Final End-State: Once the consolidations are complete, Kansas City and Ogden are the designated "end-state" sites for processing remaining paper, including mailed returns.
2022 Backlog Update: Despite massive backlogs, the IRS reaffirmed its commitment to this 2016 consolidation plan in 2022, citing the need to move toward a digital-first approach.
Note: While the IRS is reducing its physical processing centers, it is simultaneously launching initiatives to digitize all paper mail upon arrival, with the goal of "paperless processing" by the 2025 filing season.
The IRS originally announced plans to reduce its paper tax return processing centers from five sites down to two on September 14, 2016.
This consolidation strategy, driven by the continued growth of electronic filing, designated the following as the only remaining "end-state" locations:
Kansas City, Missouri: To focus primarily on individual paper tax returns (Form 1040).
Ogden, Utah: To focus primarily on business and tax-exempt returns.
Timeline
of Consolidation
The plan involved closing three other major submission processing centers over several years:
Covington, Kentucky: Closed in 2019.
Fresno, California: Closed in September 2021.
Austin, Texas: Originally scheduled to close in September 2024.
Recent Reversal
In January 2022, the IRS reversed its decision to close the Austin Texas facility. Due to significant backlogs of paper returns and hiring challenges at other sites, the agency decided to maintain three processing centers (Kansas City, Ogden and Austin) to ensure sufficient capacity for taxpayers.
For current filing instructions, you can use the IRS Interactive Tax Assistant or check the IRS processing status dashboard to see how paper returns are being handled.
Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader
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