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Technology is key to relationships, our work

Advocacy

Lee Ho, Minnesota Department of Revenue deputy commissioner | December 2022/January 2023 Footnote

Editor's note: Updated November 29, 2022

As a new year approaches, the Minnesota Department of Revenue is gearing up for the next filing season and legislative session, as we always do. We’re also preparing for a new leader to take the helm.
 
After winning reelection, Gov. Tim Walz is expected to name a new commissioner by the end of this year. At this writing, we do not yet know who that will be, but you can rest assured the department will keep building on our historical relationships with the MNCPA and other partners.
 
We look forward to working with the governor, legislators of both parties and other stakeholders during the 2023 legislative session and beyond. This session will likely include a federal conformity package and other updates to our state tax system.
 
Through laws change over time, Revenue always strives for fair, efficient and transparent administration of state taxes. To that end, we’re always thinking about how we can maintain and improve our:
  • Relationships with customers outside the department.
  • Relationships with each other inside the department.
  • Systems and infrastructure that we use to administer Minnesota’s tax code.

Information technology plays a large — and growing — role in how we manage these relationships and systems. That was true before the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020, and it’s even more true today.

Tech landscape

The past three years have brought greater emphasis on self-service options and hybrid work opportunities for our Revenue team and our customers. These shifts parallel similar changes taking place in various ways across all levels of government.
 
As CPAs, you have likely experienced these same trends in your own practices or workplaces. And you regularly interact with Revenue staff, systems and services. As a result, you have a keen understanding of the opportunities and challenges technology brings to our collective work.
 
Our IT systems and online or digital services provide a crucial link between Revenue, our employees and the millions of people and businesses we serve. Like other agencies, our systems operate in a landscape shaped by:

  • Widely varying — and evolving — customer needs, abilities and challenges.
  • State and federal laws with a range of requirements that affect our work.
  • Budgets and staffing that can fluctuate over time.
  • Protection of sensitive private and organizational data from potential cybersecurity threats.
As deputy commissioner, I represent Revenue on the Minnesota Technology Advisory Council (TAC), which advises the state on strategies to manage and modernize its IT systems and services.

IT services and digital tools can make government more efficient and provide Minnesotans with easier access to state and local services. However, these technologies change fast — and frequently. To realize their full potential, organizations and their IT systems and processes must do the same — and continuously improve over time.
 
TAC includes government and private-sector tech and security experts to help agencies meet that challenge. In its current form, the council started meeting in 2021 and will release a report and recommendations soon.
 
TAC’s upcoming report will build on the work and recommendations of its predecessor, the Blue Ribbon Council on Information Technology. Several of those previous recommendations are already being implemented.
 
You can learn more about TAC and its predecessors on the MNIT website at https://mn.gov/mnit/about-mnit/committees/tac.jsp. The council is an effective public-private partnership and great example of how we can work together to improve government services in Minnesota.

Looking ahead

The 2023 legislative session begins Jan. 3. Among other business, Gov. Walz and the Legislature will propose and negotiate a state budget for fiscal years 2023–24. Revenue stands ready to support the work of the tax and finance committees and the governor during the session, which ends by May 22.
 
We’ll notify you about any tax law changes through our website and other channels and provide further guidance as needed. For the latest information: Meanwhile, the department welcomes feedback from the MNCPA and its members about how we can support you during the upcoming filing season or your thoughts on how to improve our state tax system.
 
We also look forward to welcoming our next revenue commissioner — whoever that may be — and I know you’ll do the same. I hope you enjoy the holiday season and have a Happy New Year.
 
Lee Ho is deputy commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Revenue.