LOUISIANA DEPT OF REVENUE STRATEGIC PLAN

2012-2014Practitioner and Louisiana Department of

Revenue

Annual Liaison Meeting

BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA

JANUARY 16, 2014

Joseph Vaughn, Asst. Secretary, Group III

Tim Barfield, Secretary

LDR STRATEGIC PLAN

• What you will see today:– LDR Core Values– The Compliance Continuum;– LDR Strategic Planning Agency Layers– LDR Key Agency Initiatives;

LDR STRATEGIC PLAN CONT.

CORE VALUES

What does the agency believe in?

Trust-Maintain a mutual respect and shared confidence between managers

and employees

Integrity-Maintain an ethical standard

of honesty and consistency

Professionalism-Maintain a

reputation of fairness, courtesy,

and reliability

Responsiveness - Focus on identifying

and satisfying external and internal

customer needs

Communication-Encourage an

ongoing creative exchange of ideas

between employees and management

Unity-Work together to

accomplish our common goals

LDR

Draft & negotiate tax

legislation

Publish forms, instructions, &

guidance

Assist & educate

taxpayers

Capture return data & process

payments

Resolve exceptions

Issue bills & resolve protest

Collect Audit Litigate Criminal enforcement

CITIZENS

Review instructions

Ask questions File returns & make

payments

Answer questions

arising from exceptions

Review bills & file

protests

Collection defense

Undergo audit

Litigation defense

Criminal enforcement

defense

More Taxpayers - Less Cost(VOLUNTARY COMPIANCE)

Fewer Taxpayers - Higher Cost(NON-COMPLIANCE)

Louisiana’s tax system is based on voluntary compliance – the expectation that taxpayers will voluntarily pay the right amount of tax timely. The program engages in a range of activities that occur before the taxpayer begins to fill out their returns to enforcement of the tax laws through litigation and criminal prosecution.

4

Tax Compliance Continuum

LDR STRATEGIC PLAN CONT.

Agency Initiatives

Group Initiatives

Division Goals

Unit Goals

LDR STRATEGIC PLANNING

• AGENCY INITIATIVES– What does the agency want to accomplish?– LDR wants to continuously improve and

enhance its abilities in the areas of:• Customer service;• Operational efficiencies & accuracy; and,• Voluntary compliance & enforcement.

LDR STRATEGIC PLANNING• The agency is currently broken down into four main groups that

are managed by a specific appointing authority. • Each group is thereafter separated into various divisions and

some divisions are broken down into units which perform specific tasks and/or functions.

• Collectively, each unit, division and group performs the agency’s core functions of: • Collecting tax dollars owed the state of Louisiana;• Communicating pertinent information to all internal and

external stakeholders and customers; • Processing all tax returns and other information sent to the

agency in a timely manner; and, • Educating all internal and external customers and

stakeholders on the tax laws and policies of the state of Louisiana.

LDR STRATEGIC PLANNING

• Performance data from each performance indicator or WIG shall be reported on a monthly, quarterly and fiscal year basis by the appointing authority.

• Meanwhile, division directors will develop division goals and unit managers/supervisors will develop unit goals.

• From there each division and unit goal should have performance indicators or WIGs established which shows the division and unit is addressing the agency initiatives.

• Appointing Authorities, Directors and other managers/supervisors are encouraged to review and utilize their current strategic initiatives, WIGs, goals and performance measures to address the information above.

LDR STRATEGIC PLANNING

GROUP INITIATIVES:(Developed by the appointed official)

DIVISION GOALS: (Developed by the division director)

UNIT GOALS: (Developed by the unit manager)

LDR STRATEGIC PLANNING

• AGENCY INTIATIVES: • LDR wants to continuously improve its

abilities in the areas of Customer Service; Operational Efficiency & Accuracy; and Voluntary Compliance & Enforcement – explained as follows:

LDR AGENCY INITIATIVES

• CUSTOMER SERVICE - to provide efficient delivery of information and quality service options for citizens and businesses to comply with state tax laws.

• OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY & ACCURACY - to utilize processes that will strategically streamline operations, lower operating costs and increase operating effectiveness.

• VOLUNTARY COMPLIANCE & ENFORCEMENT - to utilize efficient processes and mechanisms that encourage and ensure voluntary compliance is easier and less complex. Meanwhile, these processes and mechanisms should also make involuntary compliance less necessary; but, also ensure involuntary compliance is more productive and efficient. Target measures gauge the success of the agency’s compliance and enforcements efforts.

CUSTOMER SERVICE GROUP INITIATIVES

– Increase the number of taxpayer correspondence cleared within 30 days of receipt from 55% to 75% by June 30, 2014;

– Achieve an overall customer service rating of good or excellent from 90% to 95% in customer service ratings received by June 30, 2014;

– Improve incoming call abandonment rate from 26% to less than ten percent (10%) by June 30, 2014;

CUSTOMER SERVICE GROUP INITIATIVES

CONT.– Increase the percentage of manual

individual income tax refunds processed within 30 days from 86% to 90% by June 30, 2014;

– Increase the percentage of manual business master file tax refunds processed within 30 day from 78% to 85% by June 30, 2014;

CUSTOMER SERVICE GROUP INITIATIVES

CONT.

* CONVERT THE FIELD AUDIT SERVICES TAXPAYER’S “POST-AUDIT SURVEY” SYSTEM FROM A PAPER SYSTEM TO AND ELECTRONIC SYSTEM BY JUNE 30, 2014; and,  

* INCREASE THE NUMBER OF SURVEYS RECEIVED FROM AUDITED TAXPAYERS FROM .5% OF TAXPAYERS AUDITED TO 10% BY JUNE 30 2015.

OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY & ACCURACY GROUP INITIAIVES

– Improve average remittance processing time from 3.89 to 2.75 days by June 30, 2014;

– Improve percentage of funds deposited within 24 hours of receipt from 82.48% to 87% by June 30, 2014;

–  Improve the average turn-around time for formal policy statements from 317 to 60 days by June 30, 2014;

– Improve average resolution time of cases in litigation from 359 to 275 days by June 30, 2014;

OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY & ACCURACY GROUP INITIATIVES CONT.

– Improve average return processing time from 5.15 to 4.5 days by June 30, 2014;

– Improve HR internal efficiencies from 75% to 90% by June 30, 2014;

– Maintain the cost of collecting $100 of revenue at $.82 for the fiscal year ending on June 30, 2014;

– Increase the per month number of employee viewed taxpayer online education courses viewed from 4,106 to 8,000 by December 31, 2014;

OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY & ACCURACY GROUP INITIATIVES CONT.• Decrease deposit times for mail in

payments of system taxes from 3.36 to 2.99 days by June 30, 2014;

• Decrease processing times for paper returns for system taxes from 5.21 to 4.99 days by June 30, 2014;

•  Increase the percentage of items deposited within 24 hours from 18.79% to 19.79% by June 30, 2014;

OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY & ACCURACY GROUP INITIATIVES CONT.

– Create a registry to record and track the transfer and use of transferable tax credits by January 1 2014;

* INCREASE THE NUMBER OF MANAGED AUDITS COMPLETED AND ASSESSED FROM 7 TO 10 BY JUNE 30, 2014; and,

* SECURE JOINT STATE/PARISH AUDITING COOPERATIVE ENDEAVOR AGREEMENTS FROM ONE TO FOUR (4) PARISH SALES TAX ADMINISTRATION OFFICES BY JUNE 30, 2014.

VOLUNTARY COMPLIANCE & ENFORCEMENT GROUP INITIATIVES

– Increase self-generated funds collected from $53 million to $65 million by June 30, 2014;

* INCREASE THE AMOUNT OF INTERCEPTED FRAUDULENT REFUNDS FROM $3.4 MILLION TO $10 MILLION BY DECEMBER 31, 2014; – Increase the per month average number of

taxpayers viewing online educational courses from 3,991 to 6,000 views by December 31, 2014;

VOLUNTARY COMPLIANCE & ENFORCEMENT GROUP INITIATIVES

* INCREASE THE PERCENTAGE OF REGISTERED TAXPAYERS AUDITED FROM .48% TO .7% BY JUNE 30, 2014;

* INCREASE THE NUMBER OF DISCOVERY ASSESSMENTS ISSUED BY OFFICE AUDIT FROM 47,969 TO 65,000 BY JUNE 30, 2014;

* INCREASE THE NUMBER OF FIELD AUDITS PERFORMED FROM 2,137 TO 2,300 BY JUNE 30, 2014; and,

VOLUNTARY COMPLIANCE & ENFORCEMENT GROUP INITIATIVES

* ISSUE AT LEAST SIX (6) PROPOSED ASSESSMENTS OF AUDITS PERFORMED BY CONTRACT AUDIT COMPANIES BY JUNE 30, 2014;

*INCREASE EXPOSURES OF THE LDR’S VOLUNTARY DISCLOSURE PROGRAM (VDA) through the LDR website and Public Affairs announcements and strive for increasing the number of Voluntary Disclosure Agreements requested from 138 to 150 by June 30, 2014.

VOLUNTARY COMPLIANCE & ENFORCEMENT GROUP INITIATIVES

• Other audit initiatives:– Looking much closer at transfer pricing

arrangements to make sure they involve arms length transactions;

– Working with IT service providers to identify better analytical tools to help with better audit selection;

– Partnering with other state agencies through cooperative audit endeavors (LED, AG, PS;

VOLUNTARY COMPLIANCE & ENFORCEMENT GROUP INITIATIVES

• Other audit initiatives continued:– Looking much closer at recreational vehicles

purchased through Montana LLCs;– Working more closely with ATC on joint

investigations of establishments that sell tobacco and/or alcohol products;

– Beefing up discovery staff and tools;– Performing more individual income tax field

audits.

LDR STRAGEGIC PLANCONCLUSION

• MISSION STATEMENT– Why does the agency exist?

• LDR exists to fairly and efficiently collect state tax revenues to fund public services and regulate the sale of alcoholic beverages, tobacco, and charitable gaming within Louisiana

• VISION STATEMENT– What does the agency want to be?

• LDR wants to be a results-based, innovative and focused organization that is capable of rapidly responding to the needs of its citizens/stakeholders

QUESTION?

THEEND!