The average wait time for callers looking for help from the IRS has fallen to four minutes this year, the Treasury Department said Monday. The average wait time was 27 minutes last year, when the tax agency earned its worst customer service ratings on record.

The Treasury Department attributed the improvement to the additional funding it received from Congress this year. “Thanks to the 5,000 new hires made possible by Inflation Reduction Act resources, IRS customer service representatives answered more than 6.5 million taxpayer calls this year, 2.4 million more calls with live assistance since the start of the year through April 7, compared to the same period in 2022,” the department said in a press release.

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