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Taxpayer Advocate

Taxpayer Advocate for DC.gov

DC Office of Tax and Revenue Launches its Office of the Taxpayer Advocate

Wednesday, March 4, 2020

(Washington, DC) – The District of Columbia Office of Tax and Revenue (OTR) announced today that it has launched a new unit within OTR, the Office of the Taxpayer Advocate (OTA). OTA has been created to address complex and unique individual income, business and real property tax cases in which taxpayers have been unable to satisfactorily resolve on their own.

“I have heard from numerous taxpayers who had to deal with complex issues at OTR, and unfortunately, it was a tedious task with our current processes,” said Deputy Chief Financial Officer Keith J. Richardson. “We now have an office that works on behalf of District taxpayers to identify systemic problems, including those that compromise taxpayer rights or unduly burden taxpayers, and recommends administrative and legislative reforms.”

Modeled after the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) Taxpayer Advocate office, the District’s OTA ensures there is an official role of a trusted advocate on behalf of taxpayers.

The duties of the OTA will be to:

  • Educate taxpayers on their rights

  • Assist taxpayers in resolving complex tax matters

  • Identify area in which taxpayers have challenges working with OTR

  • Propose solutions, including administrative changes to OTR's practices and processes

  • Recommend legislative action

  • Promote communication and outreach

  • Prepare an annual report to identify initiatives taken and recommendations

The office of eight employees will be managed by Elena Fowlkes, who was named OTR's taxpayer advocate in October. Prior to joining OTR, Ms. Fowlkes was the assistant director of the University of Baltimore School of Law Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic, where she supervised law students in federal and state tax controversy litigation and administrative appeals and co-taught the corresponding seminar class.

Ms. Fowlkes, who holds a juris doctor and master’s of Laws in Taxation from the University of Baltimore School of Law, has worked to ensure access to representation, provided education and outreach, and strove for the improvement of the tax system for low-income taxpayers.

“OTR is committed to providing a voice for District taxpayers,” says Fowlkes. “We are making it a priority to identify tax challenges that taxpayers face and to provide solutions they need.”

For more information and to learn more on how to request assistance, visit taxpayeradvocate.dc.gov.