Tax watchdogs like Stephen Ellis, president of the nonpartisan group Taxpayers For Common Sense, share the alarm that the situation at the IRS could have wide-ranging consequences.

“Taxpayers deserve a functioning IRS,” said Ellis, “and right now, it is flailing.”

“I don’t know if it’s going to show up this tax year,” said Ellis, with Taxpayers For Common Sense, of the current IRS muddle. “But in the future, you can’t lose that amount of organizational knowledge and history and not have some negative impact.”