Whatever you may lack at a CDP, paper should not be one. When the AO asks for documents, provide them. In this electronic age, storage should not be an issue; scanners and hard drives are cheap compared to a lien or levy.

Chad T. Mackland and Tina M. Mackland, T. C. Memo. 2025-69, filed 7/1/25, might have made out a case for CNC on hardship grounds if they provided the nine-page Fannie/Freddie Form 1003 loan application to the AO during the seven (count ’em, seven) months between hearing and confirmation of the NITL, showing attempt to draw on equity in home to pay down tax liability. T. C. Memo. 2025-69, at p. 8.

“Although the AO’s notes include a CNC code suggesting that collection of the liability would create a hardship for petitioners, the AO apparently determined, in requiring petitioners to borrow against the equity in their house, that the economic hardship exception did not apply.” T. C. Memo. 2025-69, at p. 12.

Judge Rose E. (“Cracklin'”) Jenkins says nonproof of attempt to realize on equity equals refusal to do so.

“Petitioners contend that the existence of a federal tax lien made it difficult to complete the loan process; however, there is no indication in the administrative record that petitioners made any request for the IRS to subordinate the tax lien under section 6325(d). In any event, any difficulty in obtaining a loan should not have prevented petitioners from providing proof of their attempts to secure the loan as requested by the AO. Although petitioners did not explicitly refuse to borrow against their home, and in fact claimed they were attempting to do so, their failure to provide any solid proof of their attempts could be understood as a refusal.” T. C. Memo. 2025-69, at pp. 14-15.