A multimillion- dollar plan by the Internal Revenue Service to allow taxpayers to file their tax returns via the Internet has been shelved again because of a critical report by the General Accounting Office this week.
The service, called Cyberfile, promises to save time and money for taxpayers by submitting tax forms through the Net. Cyberfile was set for release early this year, and was already delayed once due to security problems.
Now the problems are worse, GAO officials said. The GAO sent a report to Capitol Hill Monday, which said that Cyberfile was unreliable. The GAO held a similar hearing about the plan in March.
"We testified that the system was not built adequately," said a GAO official, who asked not to be named. "The software the IRS developed was undisciplined. They didn't adequately consider security requirements."
The IRS says the plan has been "sidetracked" and will be available when various issues, including security, are resolved.
IRS officials in Washington declined comment on the GAO's allegations. |
