Nina Olson testified about assistance available from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to taxpayers experiencing economic difficulties. She also talked about about her report on the potential impact of the economic downturn and her recommendations that the IRS change some of its collection practices in order to avoid exacerbating the financial distress of taxpayers. Among the topics addressed were collection alternatives, identification of distressed taxpayers, and the impact on IRS operations of increased call volumes and collection activity.