San Bernardino IRS Attorney (Inland Empire)

Written by Sam Brotman, J.D., LL.M. (Taxation), CPA — Managing Attorney, Brotman Law  ·  Updated May 2026

What the IRS Does in San Bernardino

The IRS Riverside/Inland Empire Field Office in the Ontario, CA area handles field examinations and collection matters for San Bernardino and Riverside counties. Ontario is roughly midway between San Bernardino and Los Angeles, and the field office serves the full Inland Empire territory — from the eastern portion of San Bernardino County through Riverside County.

Three types of IRS contact, and what each one means:

• Audit notice (CP2000, 30-day letter, Letter 2205-C): This comes from the IRS Examination division. The IRS is questioning one or more items on a specific tax return. A CP2000 is the automated notice matching third-party information against your return. A 30-day letter proposes specific adjustments. Neither is a final determination — you have appeal rights at every stage.
• Revenue officer contact: A revenue officer is a field collection employee, not an examiner. Their job is to collect an existing balance. They carry official IRS credentials and can visit your home or business. Revenue officer contact means the matter has escalated beyond the normal automated collection system.
• IRS Criminal Investigation (CI) special agent: If someone identifies themselves as an IRS CI special agent and wants to speak with you, do not answer questions. Contact a criminal tax attorney before any further communication. A CI visit is not an audit — it is a criminal investigation.

The Inland Empire has elevated audit rates for certain business types — particularly self-employed taxpayers and cash-intensive businesses — relative to some other Southern California markets. The IRS's statistical models identify returns where reported income and expense patterns deviate significantly from industry norms, and the Inland Empire's economy produces a consistent supply of those returns.

Common IRS Issues in San Bernardino

Worker Classification — Logistics, Warehousing, and Independent Drivers

The Inland Empire is one of the largest logistics and warehousing hubs in the United States, and worker classification — the employee vs. independent contractor question — is one of the region's most significant IRS audit issues.

The logistics sector's reliance on independent drivers and warehouse workers creates persistent classification exposure. The IRS determines employment status under the common law control test: whether the company controls how, when, and where the worker performs services. Factors the IRS examines include whether the worker sets their own schedule, provides their own vehicle and equipment, has the right to work for multiple clients, and operates under their own business name. Owner-operators of commercial trucks who enter into operating agreements with carriers face particularly complex classification analysis under multiple IRC provisions and Department of Transportation regulations.

Misclassification carries substantial consequences. The employer owes the employee's share of FICA taxes under IRC § 3102 that should have been withheld, plus the employer's share under IRC § 3111, plus penalties and interest. Under IRC § 3509, the IRS's relief rates for misclassification are lower than the regular rates, but the exposure remains material for companies with large contractor workforces. The Trust Fund Recovery Penalty under IRC § 6672 can assess the unpaid employee taxes personally against responsible officers.

California's EDD enforces worker classification separately, using the ABC test under California Unemployment Insurance Code § 621. The ABC test is stricter than the IRS's common law test — companies facing IRS worker classification scrutiny in the Inland Empire often face parallel EDD audit risk on the same workforce.

Construction and Small Retail — Cash Businesses

The Inland Empire's construction sector and small retail businesses generate consistent IRS examination activity, particularly around income reconstruction in cash-intensive operations.

Construction contractors with significant subcontractor arrangements face IRS scrutiny of Form 1099-NEC reporting accuracy and worker classification. General contractors who pay subcontractors without issuing 1099s, or who convert employees to subcontractors without proper documentation, create audit exposure on two fronts: information return penalty assessments and potential reclassification of those workers. The IRS uses subcontractor payment records cross-referenced against payroll tax returns to identify gaps.

For small retail operations, the IRS uses indirect income reconstruction methods — bank deposit analysis, cash-T analysis, and markup analysis — when books and records are incomplete or inconsistent. The IRS does not need a taxpayer's full accounting records to reconstruct income. It can use deposits, industry gross profit margins, and comparison to prior years to argue that reported income understates actual income. Having an attorney manage the information production process in these examinations matters significantly.

Construction and Real Estate — Section 199A and Passive Losses

Inland Empire real estate investors and construction business owners benefit from — and are audited around — the IRC § 199A qualified business income (QBI) deduction and passive activity loss rules.

The IRC § 199A deduction allows eligible taxpayers to deduct up to 20% of qualified business income from pass-through entities. For construction businesses that are specified service trades or businesses (SSTBs), or for real estate investors whose activities do not rise to the level of a trade or business for purposes of § 199A, the deduction calculation and eligibility can be complex. The IRS examines § 199A deduction claims on Form 8995-A when the claimed deduction appears inconsistent with the reported business income or when the taxpayer's income is above the threshold amounts.

International Tax — Border Proximity

San Bernardino County's proximity to the California-Mexico border creates some international tax exposure that is less common in Northern California markets. U.S. taxpayers who do business in Mexico or who have Mexican bank accounts have FBAR and FATCA reporting obligations. A FinCEN Form 114 (FBAR) must be filed annually by U.S. persons with foreign financial accounts exceeding $10,000 in aggregate value. Willful failure to file carries civil penalties up to the greater of $100,000 or 50% of the account value per violation.

Federal Tax Court for San Bernardino Taxpayers

The U.S. Tax Court holds regular sessions in Los Angeles — the nearest Tax Court location for San Bernardino and Inland Empire taxpayers. The Los Angeles Tax Court sessions are held at the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building, 255 East Temple Street, Los Angeles.

When the IRS issues a Notice of Deficiency (the "90-day letter"), the taxpayer has 90 days from the mailing date to file a petition with the Tax Court under IRC § 6213. This deadline is absolute. Missing it means the IRS can assess and collect the deficiency immediately, and the only remaining recourse is to pay the tax and file a refund claim in federal district court or the Court of Federal Claims.

Filing a Tax Court petition does not commit you to a trial. The large majority of Tax Court cases resolve through settlement at the IRS Independent Office of Appeals before reaching trial. The petition is the legal step that preserves your rights and creates the opportunity for a pre-trial Appeals settlement conference.

IRS Collections in San Bernardino

IRS collection cases in the Inland Empire are handled through ACS for routine matters and through Inland Empire field revenue officers for escalated cases.

Automated Collection System (ACS) manages most collection cases by phone and mail — installment agreements for smaller balances, routine levy notices, and standard collection correspondence. ACS employees do not make field visits.

Inland Empire revenue officers work out of the Ontario-area field office. A revenue officer assignment means the balance is substantial, there is a compliance history, or ACS has been unable to resolve the matter. Revenue officers can appear at your home or business, issue summonses, file Notices of Federal Tax Lien in the San Bernardino County Recorder's office, and recommend levies on bank accounts or wages.

Resolution options include installment agreement under IRC § 6159, Offer in Compromise under IRC § 7122, and Currently Not Collectible status under IRM 5.16. In some cases, a strategy around the 10-year Collection Statute Expiration Date (CSED) under IRC § 6502 is worth considering — the CSED is an often-overlooked tool in collection defense. See our full guide on IRS collections defense.

About Sam Brotman

I am the managing attorney of Brotman Law, a California tax law firm I founded in San Diego in 2013. I hold a J.D., LL.M. in Taxation, and CPA license. San Diego and the Inland Empire are both in Southern California — I am about 60 miles from San Bernardino and handle Inland Empire IRS matters as a routine part of my practice.

I am admitted to practice before the U.S. Tax Court and all IRS divisions under Form 2848. Since 2013, Brotman Law has represented over 400 clients in audits and recovered or saved $1B+ in taxes and penalties. Most Inland Empire clients work with me by phone and video. You can reach the office at (619) 378-3138. To talk through your IRS matter, book a free 15-minute call.