Miller, Morgante Named to Leadership Posts

WASHINGTON - The Internal Revenue Service today announced the selection of Steven T. Miller as commissioner of the Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division and Rich Morgante as deputy commissioner of the Wage and Investment Division.

“These are two strong leaders who will oversee key parts of the IRS,’ said IRS Commissioner Mark W. Everson. The appointments will be effective June 1.

As commissioner of the Tax Exempt and Government Entities (TE/GE) Division, Miller will direct one of the agency´s four service-wide enforcement priorities to discourage and deter non-compliance within tax-exempt and government entities and misuse of such entities by third parties for tax avoidance and other unintended purposes.

TE/GE oversees the administration of tax law relating to employee plans, tax-exempt organizations and various government entities. TE/GE serves approximately 3 million organizations.

Miller currently is director of TE/GE´s exempt organizations function, a post he has held since 1999. An expert in both pension and exempt organization tax law, Miller served in the IRS Chief Counsel´s Office for several years. He joined Employee Plans and Exempt Organizations (the precursor to TE/GE) in 1993. Miller also has experience as a congressional staff member for the Joint Committee on Taxation and in private practice.

He graduated from the University of Maryland, received his law degree from George Washington University and an LL.M. in Taxation from Georgetown University Law School.

“Steve is well qualified to lead our efforts to clean up abuses in the non-profit sector, which are of increasing concern to the IRS,’ Everson said. “His familiarity with the exempt organization and pension areas will be a huge asset to the IRS and the TE/GE community.’

Miller will replace Evelyn Petschek, who will become the commissioner´s chief of staff on June 1.

Morgante will replace Wage and Investment Deputy Commissioner John C. Duder, who will retire from the IRS next month at the end of his four-year appointment. In addition, Wage and Investment Commissioner Henry O. Lamar, Jr., recently announced his intention to retire in June 2005. At that time, Morgante is expected to assume the W&I commissioner´s position. Morgante will replace Wage and Investment Deputy Commissioner John C. Duder, who will retire from the IRS next month at the end of his four-year appointment. In addition, Wage and Investment Commissioner Henry O. Lamar, Jr., recently announced his intention to retire in June 2005. At that time, Morgante is expected to assume the W&I commissioner´s position.

Morgante currently serves as deputy commissioner of TE/GE, a post he held since 2002. In recent months, he has also worked closely with IRS system modernization efforts to help ensure the technology initiative is closely aligned with IRS operational needs.

W&I is the largest of the IRS´ four operating divisions. It serves the 130 million taxpayers who file the Form 1040 series each year.

“Rich is a strong leader familiar with many parts of the IRS,’ Everson said. “He will be well-prepared to take over W&I, a cornerstone of our operations since it is the face of the IRS to the vast majority of taxpayers. I appreciate Henry giving us this long advance notice of his future plans to help with succession planning.’

Lamar has led the W&I operation during the past year and oversaw a successful filing season. Lamar, who joined the IRS in 1971, has held a variety of IRS leadership positions, including Deputy National Taxpayer Advocate. In 2002, he received the Robert E. Wenzel Excellence in Service Award, given annually to the career IRS executive who best represents the standards of excellence and dedication in public service.

Duder served as W&I´s deputy commissioner since the organization was created in 2000. He joined the IRS after a distinguished career in the private-sector, most recently at AT&T.

Before joining TE/GE, Morgante was the Director of Management and Finance in the Small Business/Self Employed Division. He began his IRS career in 1975 as a Taxpayer Service Representative in Syracuse, N.Y. Other positions include National Director for Economic Analysis, National Director for Budget, Assistant Director of the Los Angeles District and Director of the Gulf Coast District.

A native of Buffalo, N.Y., Morgante holds a degree in philosophy and theology from St. John Vianney Seminary in East Aurora, N.Y., , a certificate in public administration from the University of Southern California and a certificate in financial management from George Washington University.

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