When a creditor cancels part or all of a debt that you owe, that is taxable income to you. For example, if they cancel $5,000 of debt, it's as if they paid you $5,000. You have to report that income on your tax return and pay tax on it. You should have received a Form 1099-C from the creditor showing the amount of debt that was canceled. If you didn't include that in your 2018 tax return, that's why you owe money now.
If the IRS is correct, you can just pay the amount that you owe. Follow the instructions in the IRS notice for how to respond to it. If you can't pay it all right now, you can request a payment plan. Go to the following link on the IRS web site for information about applying for a payment plan.
Apply Online for a Payment Plan
I think the reference in the IRS notice to Form 1040 lines 17a and 17b is probably saying that the amount of your Earned Income Credit (EIC) and Additional Child Tax Credit might have been affected by the increase in the amount of your income. But the amount that the notice says you owe already takes that into account.
If you purchased Audit Defense for your 2018 tax return, call TaxResources, Inc. at 877-829-9695, or report your IRS notice on their web site. http://intuit.taxaudit.com/ Do not contact the IRS until you have spoken to TaxResources. They may contact the IRS on your behalf.
If you did not purchase Audit Defense, you can get help with your IRS notice from TurboTax at the following link.
We can help you with your IRS letter
In any case, make sure you respond to the IRS notice by the date in the notice.
