The IRS is soliciting comments from the public on the proposal to eliminate the Bulletin Index from the IRB.
If you have comments concerning this issue, direct all written comments to Gerald J. Shields, LL.M., Internal Revenue Service, Tax Products Coordinating Committee, SE:W:CAR:MP:T:M:S, 1111 Constitution Avenue NW, IR-6526, Washington, DC 20224. Do not send any tax forms to this address.
The IRS provides a method for researching tax laws, regulations, and other tax matters published in the IRB called the ’’Bulletin Index.’’ Generally, the Bulletin Index appears in the IRB issue at the end of the month. Due to budgetary restraints, the IRS proposes to eliminate the Bulletin Index. The IRS invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on the proposed elimination of the Bulletin Index.
The Bulletin Index provides a method for researching matters published in the IRB (which is the authoritative instrument of the Commissioner for announcing official rulings and procedures of the Internal Revenue Service and for publishing Public Laws, Treasury Decisions, and other items of general interest). The indexes are intended only as aids to the reader in identifying the subject matter covered. They may not be relied upon as authoritative interpretations. The IRS proposes to eliminate the Bulletin Index because of the excessive costs incurred to produce this section of the IRB.
As a cost cutting measure, the IRS is no longer printing paper copies of the IRB. Also, the IRS will not create the Cumulative Bulletin after the 2008-2 edition. See Announcement 2013-12, 2013-11 I.R.B. 651, for more information about the paper copies of the IRB.
The Internal Revenue Bulletin is produced and published by the Internal Revenue Service and contains IRS pronouncements affecting tax analysis under the Code and the Regulations, including but not limited to Revenue Procedures, Revenue Rulings, Notices and Announcements. Access the IRS site at https://www.irs.gov/help/irsgov-accessibility for information concerning accessibility of IRS materials. While every effort has been made to ensure that the IRB database files available through the TouchTax application are accurate, those using TouchTax for legal research should verify their results against the printed versions of the IRBs available from the IRS.