UPDATE, Dec. 1, 2025: The MATH Act today was signed into law. National Taxpayer Advocate Erin M. Collins heralded the enactment as a long-overdue win for taxpayers.
The government shutdown is now in its 23rd day, the second-longest federal services closure ever.
The U.S. House has not met to consider any legislation since Sept. 19, when Representatives approved a measure to temporarily fund Uncle Sam’s operations.
But the upper chamber of Congress is still working, sort of, between failed votes on ways to get the full federal government back on track. On Monday, Oct. 20, Senators passed the Internal Revenue Service Math and Taxpayer Help (MATH) Act.
The House approved the bill, H.R. 998, by voice vote on March 31. It’s now headed to the Oval Office, awaiting Donald Trump’s signature to make it law.
IRS MATH Act’s bipartisan supporters say that when that happens, taxpayers will get a clearer explanation of certain mistakes on their 1040 forms, the actions the IRS took to correct them, and ways to question the tax agency’s determinations.
Current IRS correction rights: Math errors are among the most common mistakes that taxpayers make each filing season. Such purely mathematical or clerical issues are often found by the IRS early in the normal processing of a return, rather than later during an examination — that’s what the IRS calls an audit — of a return.
To help the IRS deal with these mathematical mistakes without unduly slowing down the processing stream, the IRS has what is known as math error authority.
This allows the tax agency, when it discovers simple math or clerical errors on returns, to make changes to the filings using the proper amounts, refigure the correct tax liability, and then alert the affected taxpayers of the changes.
Once taxpayers get notices about the IRS changes, they can sign off on the revisions the agency made or challenge them. But, that’s not always so straightforward.
MATH adds up for both parties: Rep. Randy Feenstra (R-Iowa), lead House sponsor of the IRS MATH Act, said “current notices do not contain helpful information, leaving millions of taxpayers confused about how or when to rectify an issue with the IRS.”
“My bill ensures that the IRS clearly spells out errors on tax forms and helps taxpayers not only understand the mistake but also challenge it if they see fit. With this legislative fix, we can improve customer service by promoting open and transparent communication between the IRS and the taxpayer when a tax error is identified,” added Feenstra.
U.S. Rep. Bradley Scott Schneider (D-Illinois) joined Feenstra in introducing the House bill. The Senate counterpart, S. 608, was sponsored by Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) and Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana).
“No one should have to spend a fortune on a lawyer or hours trying to figure out what went wrong on their taxes when the IRS already knows the answer,” said Warren.
MATH changes: The IRS MATH Act, once it is signed into law, will require the tax agency notices that describe a mathematical or clerical error to be plain, easy to understand language.
That means, in part, that the notice details the type of error, the section of the Internal Revenue Code to which the error relates, and the line on the taxpayer’s return where the erroneous entry was made.
It also must contain an itemized computation of tax adjustments the IRS made after discovering and correcting the math error.
The IRS MATH Act also should help ease added costs taxpayers might incur because of such errors. Under the pending new law, Treasury now must provide additional procedures for taxpayers seeking an abatement of a math or clerical error adjustment. The options would include such requests by telephone or in person.
In addition, the IRS MATH Act requires Treasury and the IRS to implement a pilot program to send math or clerical error notices by certified or registered mail, instead of just through the regular U.S. Postal Service system.
Support and skepticism: The American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) lauded the passage of the IRS MATH Act, saying it represents common-sense reform that enhances IRS operations and improves the taxpayer experience.
“This new law directly addresses long-standing issues with how the IRS communicates and resolves mathematical or clerical errors on tax returns,” said Melanie Lauridsen, Vice President of AICPA Tax Policy & Advocacy. The bill’s various provisions, she added, provide greater fairness and due process, reduce taxpayer confusion and stress, and offer filers improved access to remedies.
Similar plaudits came from the National Taxpayers Union (NTU).
“It is a very encouraging sign that in the middle of a shutdown, probably the most partisan environment imaginable, the Senate came together through unanimous consent to pass legislation that will deliver real relief for taxpayers facing confusing IRS notice procedures,” said NTU President Pete Sepp.
But some tax professionals warn that despite the IRS MATH Act’s commendable goals, we need to wait to see how, and how well, it will work in real filing situations.
“However, I’m interested to see what this looks like in practice. It says ‘describe errors in plain language.’ The notices are automated and done by a computer, so they would need someone to review and actually understand what the issue is,” said Elyse Katz, a former IRS revenue agent who now is a partner with Eide Bailly and part of the firm’s Tax Controversy Team.
“Half of the time when you call the IRS even the reps don’t know what the discrepancy is. It’s unclear how they would roll this out given the lack of resources at the IRS,” added Katz in a recent Eide Bailly tax blog roundup.
