A new IRS program is helping its first users file their income taxes electronically. And it's free

Texan Dixie Warden is quick to say she's “not a numbers girl.” But as the first user of the government's new free electronic tax return filing system, Warden reports she completed her taxes this year in about an hour using the program.

“I don’t want to call myself a dummy, but this is taxes for dummies right here,” Warden said. The program asked her simple questions about her tax status, provided definitions for tax lingo such as adjusted gross income and a chatbot was on hand to answer her questions.

The project, known as Direct File and launched by the IRS on a limited basis in 12 states this tax season, is in its pilot phase. Starting this week, it is available for eligible users to start their returns at any time after earlier being available only during certain hours.

If it is successful and scaled up for the general public's use, the program could drastically change how Americans file their taxes and how much money they spend completing them. That is, if the agency can see the program through its development in spite of threats to its funding.

Warden, a 37-year-old IRS employee from Kyle, Texas, says she saved nearly $400 this tax season by filing her tax return directly to the government from her home laptop instead of paying one of the commercial tax prep services used by millions of people. Individual taxpayers pay an average of $140 preparing their tax returns each year.

Warden has worked for the IRS in a variety of roles for the past 16 years, but she is not a tax expert. She's currently a human relations specialist.

“The way that it was laid out was just so darn easy to understand and I just see it being helpful for so many millions of people,” she said.

While Warden's praise of the program might seem