Not long ago, I set aside part of my workday to ask the Internal Revenue Service a simple question. This wasn’t a complicated audit issue or a dispute over taxes owed. It was a basic inquiry that should have taken only a few minutes to answer.
Instead, I spent nearly an hour and a half on hold.
Anyone who has dealt with the IRS knows that long wait times are almost expected at this point. While frustrating, that alone might be understandable given the size of the agency and the volume of calls it receives. What followed, however, was harder to excuse.
After finally reaching a representative, I was informed that any official correspondence related to my question would need to be handled by fax or through the mail.
Fax. Or mail.
In 2026.
This is the same agency that requires most Americans to file their taxes electronically, encourages online payments, and enforces strict deadlines with penalties and interest when those deadlines are missed. Yet when taxpayers need answers or clarification, they are pushed into outdated communication methods that slow the process to a crawl.
This is not simply a matter of inconvenience. It’s a question of efficiency, accessibility, and respect for taxpayers’ time. Virtually every sector of modern life—banks, hospitals, schools, insurance companies, and local governments—has adopted secure email systems. Many handle sensitive financial and personal information every day without issue. The technology exists. The standards exist. The IRS’s refusal or inability to adopt them is increasingly indefensible.
The consequences are real. Hours wasted listening to hold music. Weeks lost waiting for mailed responses. Paper documents that can be delayed, misrouted, or lost altogether. For small business owners trying to stay compliant, seniors navigating fixed incomes, and families already stretched thin, this system adds unnecessary stress and confusion.
Taxpayers are frequently reminded that “ignorance is no excuse” when it comes to tax law. The IRS expects accuracy, timeliness, and full compliance. That expectation should run both ways. If Americans are required to operate in a digital environment, the agency overseeing the tax system should be required to meet them there.
The IRS often points to staffing shortages and funding challenges, and those concerns may be valid. But modernization is not a luxury—it’s a necessity. In fact, better communication tools would likely reduce call volumes, improve response times, and save money over the long term.
No one is asking for tax audits by text message or answers delivered via social media. What taxpayers are asking for is basic, secure email communication—something that has been standard practice for years.
If the IRS truly wants to improve customer service and efficiency, there is a clear place to start: reduce hold times, modernize communication, and stop telling Americans to dust off fax machines in the digital age.
Because nothing undermines confidence in government quite like an agency that demands modern compliance while clinging stubbornly to the past.
