IRS announces Key Executive changes to implement the Taxpayer First Act

WASHINGTON – The Internal Revenue Service today announced several key leadership appointments as work continues implementing major provisions of the Taxpayer First Act.

Douglas O’Donnell will serve as the new IRS Deputy Commissioner, Services and Enforcement. Among other leadership changes, Sunita Lough will be returning to serve as the IRS Commissioner of the Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division (TEGE).

These leadership changes are part of a larger effort underway at the IRS to continue work on the Taxpayer First Act, which includes work to reimagine the agency’s tax administration and work to improve taxpayer service and enforcement.

“I am proud of the dedicated and nimble leadership of the IRS, along with all the employees,” said IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig. “As we emerge from the pandemic, our strong leadership team is making some changes to take on the important challenges ahead. Taxpayers need to see the IRS renewing the fight each day for the highest possible service and tax compliance.”

Sunita Lough has served as the IRS Deputy Commissioner, Services and Enforcement, since September 2019. She is returning to her prior position as Commissioner of TEGE, a role she previously held from 2014 to 2019. Continue reading

‘Building the New Economy’ by MIT Sloan School

‘Building the New Economy’: MIT Sloan School researchers map out a blueprint to help individuals, infrastructure, and institutions withstand crises, from wars to pandemics

New digital technologies can help build resilient systems and empower communities

News provided by MIT Sloan School of Management, May 22, 2020, 07:30 ET

CAMBRIDGE, MA, May 22, 2020 — How can we make our financial system less fragile and more transparent? How can we make our healthcare infrastructure less reactive and more agile? And what can we do to create more robust civic institutions that work for all of us—not just those at the top?

A new book from researchers at the MIT Sloan School of Management provides answers and insights to those pressing questions. The book, Building the New Economy, is edited by Professor Alex “Sandy” Pentland, leader within the Sloan Initiative for Digital Economy and founder of the MIT-wide Connection Science program, Alexander Lipton, former Managing Director of Quantitative Solutions at Bank of America and Connection Science Fellow at MIT, and Thomas Hardjono, CTO of Connection Science and Technical Director of the MIT Trust-Data Consortium.

“With each new crisis, be it war, pandemic, natural disaster, or even the invention of a major technology, there has been a need to reinvent the relationships between individuals, businesses, and governments. The COVID-19 health emergency and ensuing economic turmoil, joined with the tsunami of data and AI technologies—is such a crisis,” says Prof. Pentland. Continue reading