On November 21, a ribbon cutting ceremony was held signaling the opening of an IRS Call Center located in downtown Clarksdale. The new Call Center is a part of the agency’s “Lifting Communities Up” (LCU) initiative created in 2022 to generate a more diverse workforce, provide long-term federal employment opportunities, and economic growth in communities outside Washington, D.C. The Call Center will field calls from the public and will house approximately sixty employees.
The Lifting Communities Up initiative was developed to help rebuild underserved communities by creating IRS job opportunities through taxpayer services. This effort in Mississippi is designed to build economic development in the community.
This past August, IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel travelled to Clarksdale to inspect the project under construction.
“Since we began the pilot program in 2022 under former Commissioner Chuck Rettig, we’ve been working to cultivate new opportunities in underserved communities by recruiting, hiring, and retaining a workforce that is reflective of the diversity in the Delta region,” says Werfel. “Together with our federal and local partners, our efforts here in Clarksdale, as well as Greenville, Stoneville, and Cleveland, reflect our commitment to supporting diverse communities and helping to connect with taxpayers. I am proud to say that we are making a difference in the Delta region.”
“We are grateful to Commissioner Werfel, Deputy Commissioner O’Donnell, Chief Operating Officer Krause, and Executive Director, Lifting Communities Up, Kevin McIver, and the entire IRS team for their commitment to creating this project and these jobs which will have such a powerful economic impact in Clarksdale and Coahoma County,” says Jon Levingston, Executive Director of the Crossroads Economic Partnership.