{"stable_id":"c19749347bf32643","slug":"irs-collection-voice-chatbots","company":"United States Internal Revenue Service","workflow_name":"Authenticated and unauthenticated collection voice and chat bots","function_code":"engineering","pattern_codes":["creator_to_judge"],"changed_assumption":"Authenticated self-service can resolve common collection questions and eligible payment-plan transactions.","evidence_strength":"reported","publication_tier":"showcase","freshness":"watch","reviewed_at":"2026-08-23","updated_at":"2026-08-22","source_quality_summary":"2 primary; publication outcomes are reported.","caveat_summary":"Interaction count is not a verified resolution-quality rate. Projected revenue is not the same as collected revenue.","freshness_caveat":"Watch status: verify the cited source and deployment condition before reusing this case.","workflow_summary":{"before":[{"actor":"Taxpayer","action":"Calls and waits for a live assistor for common collection information or payment-plan help.","actor_type":"control"},{"actor":"IRS assistor","action":"Answers routine questions or configures eligible installment agreements.","actor_type":"control"}],"hinge":"Authenticated self-service can resolve common collection questions and eligible payment-plan transactions.","after":[{"actor":"Voice or chat bot","action":"Answers common questions, authenticates eligible users, and creates or modifies permitted payment plans.","actor_type":"system"},{"actor":"IRS assistor","action":"Handles escalated, complex, or unsupported inquiries.","actor_type":"system"}],"decision_mode":"shared","decision_marker":"Human moves from creator to judge"},"before":[{"order":1,"actor":"Taxpayer","action":"Calls and waits for a live assistor for common collection information or payment-plan help.","handoff_to":"IRS assistor","control":"Identity verification and collection rules."},{"order":2,"actor":"IRS assistor","action":"Answers routine questions or configures eligible installment agreements.","handoff_to":"Taxpayer account","control":"IRS policy."}],"after":[{"order":1,"actor":"Voice or chat bot","action":"Answers common questions, authenticates eligible users, and creates or modifies permitted payment plans.","handoff_to":"Taxpayer or live assistor","control":"Preconstructed conversations, authentication, and eligibility rules."},{"order":2,"actor":"IRS assistor","action":"Handles escalated, complex, or unsupported inquiries.","handoff_to":"Taxpayer account","control":"Human service and collection authority."}],"decision_rights":"Rules determine bot eligibility; taxpayers may request a representative; IRS staff retain complex-account authority.","exception_path":"Unsupported intent, failed authentication, or taxpayer request transfers to a live assistor.","removed_work":["Routine balance and notice questions","Manual setup of eligible payment plans"],"outcomes":[{"metric":"Taxpayer interactions handled","baseline":"Taxpayers waited for live phone assistance.","result":"More than 13 million taxpayers received voice/chatbot service without waiting.","period":"January 2022 through September 2023.","scale":"English and Spanish national service.","attribution_caveat":"Interaction count is not a verified resolution-quality rate.","evidence_label":"reported"},{"metric":"Payment agreements","baseline":"Eligible plans required staff or other channels.","result":"Roughly $151-$152 million in payment agreements were established; Treasury reported project costs of $13 million.","period":"Launch through August-September 2023.","scale":"Approximately 24,000 plans in Treasury reporting.","attribution_caveat":"Projected revenue is not the same as collected revenue.","evidence_label":"reported"}],"executive_lesson":"Public-service automation works when eligibility and topics are bounded and citizens can still reach a person.","anti_pattern":"Counting interactions as successful resolutions or projected balances as collected revenue.","questions_for_leaders":["What percentage resolves without repeat contact?","How is accessibility tested?","Which intents always require staff?"],"collections":["human-still-decides"],"bundle_version":"1.0.0","bundle_fingerprint":"sha256:c23c6cc2b88153d008ea8fda928f632ce0011fc2d4c5036672a16e5d895bab93","canonical_url":"https://brianletort.ai/transformations/irs-collection-voice-chatbots"}