Monthly billing information relating to the cards is not shared or certified by those who actually use them, and the IG cited as the primary cause of the ongoing control weaknesses a lack of sustained and effective management oversight.
The agency however cited technical problems in loading billing data into the TAT system, the failure to execute paperwork required to use the system for such a purpose on time and a lack of resources needed to support the inventory process.
The IG called on the chief technology officer to achieve quarterly reviews of calling card charges and delegate an official to ensure they are completed, as well as undertake a comprehensive inventory.
It also called for an assessment to identify the management information the IRS needs to effectively manage telecommunications costs and a review of TAT to make sure it is sufficient, what it might take to augment TAT and whether alternatives should be explored.
IRS management agreed with the recommendations and delegated the director of enterprise voice services to ensure charges are reviewed quarterly, and the agency said it would modify the current waste, fraud, and abuse runs to allow for a quarterly review of a sampling of the data captured across all three months of that quarter.