diff --git a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMBinaryTagAndUnsignedArrayValue.java b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMBinaryTagAndUnsignedArrayValue.java
index c171d3686e..2eeb67fa75 100644
--- a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMBinaryTagAndUnsignedArrayValue.java
+++ b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMBinaryTagAndUnsignedArrayValue.java
@@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ public SAMBinaryTagAndUnsignedArrayValue(final short tag, final Object value) {
         if (!value.getClass().isArray() || value instanceof float[]) {
             throw new IllegalArgumentException("Attribute type " + value.getClass() +
                     " cannot be encoded as an unsigned array. Tag: " +
-                    SAMTagUtil.makeStringTag(tag));
+                    SAMTag.makeStringTag(tag));
         }
     }
 
diff --git a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMBinaryTagAndValue.java b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMBinaryTagAndValue.java
index 5a5272a199..578c7e6785 100644
--- a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMBinaryTagAndValue.java
+++ b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMBinaryTagAndValue.java
@@ -59,7 +59,7 @@ public SAMBinaryTagAndValue(final short tag, final Object value) {
         }
         if (!isAllowedAttributeValue(value)) {
             throw new IllegalArgumentException("Attribute type " + value.getClass() + " not supported. Tag: " +
-                    SAMTagUtil.makeStringTag(tag));
+                    SAMTag.makeStringTag(tag));
         }
         this.tag = tag;
         this.value = value;
diff --git a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMRecord.java b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMRecord.java
index d12a53fce7..00b5b45125 100644
--- a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMRecord.java
+++ b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMRecord.java
@@ -1163,7 +1163,7 @@ public boolean hasAttribute(final String tag) {
      * @return Appropriately typed tag value, or null if the requested tag is not present.
      */
     public Object getAttribute(final String tag) {
-        return getAttribute(SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag(tag));
+        return getAttribute(SAMTag.makeBinaryTag(tag));
     }
 
     /**
@@ -1197,7 +1197,7 @@ public Integer getIntegerAttribute(final String tag) {
      * @throws {@link htsjdk.samtools.SAMException} if the value is out of range for a 32-bit unsigned value, or not a Number
      */
     public Long getUnsignedIntegerAttribute(final String tag) throws SAMException {
-        return getUnsignedIntegerAttribute(SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag(tag));
+        return getUnsignedIntegerAttribute(SAMTag.makeBinaryTag(tag));
     }
 
     /**
@@ -1220,11 +1220,11 @@ public Long getUnsignedIntegerAttribute(final short tag) throws SAMException {
                 return lValue;
             } else {
                 throw new SAMException("Unsigned integer value of tag " +
-                        SAMTagUtil.makeStringTag(tag) + " is out of bounds for a 32-bit unsigned integer: " + lValue);
+                        SAMTag.makeStringTag(tag) + " is out of bounds for a 32-bit unsigned integer: " + lValue);
             }
         } else {
             throw new SAMException("Unexpected attribute value data type " + value.getClass() + " for tag " +
-                    SAMTagUtil.makeStringTag(tag));
+                    SAMTag.makeStringTag(tag));
         }
     }
 
@@ -1375,7 +1375,7 @@ public float[] getFloatArrayAttribute(final String tag) {
      * @throws SAMException if the tag is not present.
      */
     public boolean isUnsignedArrayAttribute(final String tag) {
-        final SAMBinaryTagAndValue tmp = this.mAttributes.find(SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag(tag));
+        final SAMBinaryTagAndValue tmp = this.mAttributes.find(SAMTag.makeBinaryTag(tag));
         if (tmp != null) return tmp.isUnsignedArray();
         throw new SAMException("Tag " + tag + " is not present in this SAMRecord");
     }
@@ -1420,7 +1420,7 @@ public Object getAttribute(final short tag) {
      * String values are not validated to ensure that they conform to SAM spec.
      */
     public void setAttribute(final String tag, final Object value) {
-        setAttribute(SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag(tag), value);
+        setAttribute(SAMTag.makeBinaryTag(tag), value);
     }
 
     /**
@@ -1436,7 +1436,7 @@ public void setUnsignedArrayAttribute(final String tag, final Object value) {
         if (Array.getLength(value) == 0) {
             throw new IllegalArgumentException("Empty array passed to setUnsignedArrayAttribute for tag " + tag);
         }
-        setAttribute(SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag(tag), value, true);
+        setAttribute(SAMTag.makeBinaryTag(tag), value, true);
     }
 
     /**
@@ -1557,7 +1557,7 @@ public List<SAMTagAndValue> getAttributes() {
         SAMBinaryTagAndValue binaryAttributes = getBinaryAttributes();
         final List<SAMTagAndValue> ret = new ArrayList<>();
         while (binaryAttributes != null) {
-            ret.add(new SAMTagAndValue(SAMTagUtil.makeStringTag(binaryAttributes.tag),
+            ret.add(new SAMTagAndValue(SAMTag.makeStringTag(binaryAttributes.tag),
                                        binaryAttributes.value));
             binaryAttributes = binaryAttributes.getNext();
         }
@@ -1771,7 +1771,7 @@ private void addField(final StringBuilder buffer, final String field) {
     }
 
     private static String formatTagValue(final short tag, final Object value) {
-        final String tagString = SAMTagUtil.makeStringTag(tag);
+        final String tagString = SAMTag.makeStringTag(tag);
         if (value == null || value instanceof String) {
             return tagString + ":Z:" + value;
         } else if (value instanceof Integer || value instanceof Long ||
diff --git a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMTag.java b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMTag.java
index f5f328042a..1ea8b88239 100644
--- a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMTag.java
+++ b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMTag.java
@@ -23,6 +23,8 @@
  */
 package htsjdk.samtools;
 
+import htsjdk.samtools.util.StringUtil;
+
 /**
  * The standard tags for a SAM record that are defined in the SAM spec.
  */
@@ -105,7 +107,11 @@ public enum SAMTag {
     U2,
     UQ;
 
-    private final short shortValue = SAMTag.makeBinaryTag(this.name());;
+    // Cache of already-converted tags.  Should speed up SAM text generation.
+    // Not synchronized because race condition is not a problem.
+    private static final String[] stringTags = new String[Short.MAX_VALUE];
+
+    private final short shortValue = SAMTag.makeBinaryTag(this.name());
 
     /**
      * Convert from String representation of tag name to short representation.
@@ -113,16 +119,34 @@ public enum SAMTag {
      * @param tag 2-character String representation of a tag name.
      * @return Tag name packed as 2 ASCII bytes in a short.
      */
-    static short makeBinaryTag(String tag) {
+    public static short makeBinaryTag(String tag) {
         if (tag.length() != 2) {
             throw new IllegalArgumentException("String tag does not have length() == 2: " + tag);
         }
         return (short)(tag.charAt(1) << 8 | tag.charAt(0));
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Convert from short representation of tag name to String representation.
+     *
+     * @param tag Tag name packed as 2 ASCII bytes in a short.
+     * @return 2-character String representation of a tag name.
+     */
+    public static String makeStringTag(final short tag) {
+        String ret = stringTags[tag];
+        if (ret == null) {
+            final byte[] stringConversionBuf = new byte[2];
+            stringConversionBuf[0] = (byte)(tag & 0xff);
+            stringConversionBuf[1] = (byte)((tag >> 8) & 0xff);
+            ret = StringUtil.bytesToString(stringConversionBuf);
+            stringTags[tag] = ret;
+        }
+        return ret;
+    }
+
     /**
      * Get the binary representation of this tag name.
-     * @see SAMTagUtil#makeBinaryTag(String)
+     * @see #makeBinaryTag(String)
      *
      * @return the binary representation of this tag name
      */
diff --git a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMTagUtil.java b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMTagUtil.java
index cf0a3c10d5..b23a735844 100644
--- a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMTagUtil.java
+++ b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMTagUtil.java
@@ -27,108 +27,147 @@
 
 /**
  * Facility for converting between String and short representation of a SAM tag.  short representation
- * is used by SAM JDK internally and is much more efficient.  Callers are encouraged to obtain the short
+ * is used by HTSJDK internally and is much more efficient.  Callers are encouraged to obtain the short
  * value for a tag of interest once, and then use the SAMRecord attribute API that takes shorts rather than
  * Strings.
  *
+ * Tags that are defined by the SAM spec are included in the enum {@link SAMTag} along with their precomputed short tag.
+ *
  * @author alecw@broadinstitute.org
+ * @deprecated as of 11/2018, the functions in this class have been absorbed by the {@link SAMTag} enum.
  */
-public final class SAMTagUtil {
-
-    /**
-     * @deprecated This constructor is public despite being a utility class for backwards compatibility reasons.
-     */
-    @Deprecated
-    public SAMTagUtil(){}
+@Deprecated
+public class SAMTagUtil {
 
-    // Standard tags pre-computed for convenience
-    public static final short AM = SAMTag.AM.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short AS = SAMTag.AS.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short BC = SAMTag.BC.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short BQ = SAMTag.BQ.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short BZ = SAMTag.BZ.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short CB = SAMTag.CB.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short CC = SAMTag.CC.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short CG = SAMTag.CG.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short CM = SAMTag.CM.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short CO = SAMTag.CO.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short CP = SAMTag.CP.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short CQ = SAMTag.CQ.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short CR = SAMTag.CR.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short CS = SAMTag.CS.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short CT = SAMTag.CT.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short CY = SAMTag.CY.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short E2 = SAMTag.E2.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short FI = SAMTag.FI.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short FS = SAMTag.FS.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short FT = SAMTag.FT.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short FZ = SAMTag.FZ.getBinaryTag();
-    /** @deprecated reserved tag for backwards compatibility only */
-    @Deprecated
-    public static final short GC = SAMTag.GC.getBinaryTag();
-    /** @deprecated reserved tag for backwards compatibility only */
-    @Deprecated
-    public static final short GS = SAMTag.GS.getBinaryTag();
-    /** @deprecated reserved tag for backwards compatibility only */
-    @Deprecated
-    public static final short GQ = SAMTag.GQ.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short LB = SAMTag.LB.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short H0 = SAMTag.H0.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short H1 = SAMTag.H1.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short H2 = SAMTag.H2.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short HI = SAMTag.HI.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short IH = SAMTag.IH.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short MC = SAMTag.MC.getBinaryTag();
-    /** @deprecated reserved tag for backwards compatibility only */
-    @Deprecated
-    public static final short MF = SAMTag.MF.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short MI = SAMTag.MI.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short MD = SAMTag.MD.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short MQ = SAMTag.MQ.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short NH = SAMTag.NH.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short NM = SAMTag.NM.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short OQ = SAMTag.OQ.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short OP = SAMTag.OP.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short OC = SAMTag.OC.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short OF = SAMTag.OF.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short OR = SAMTag.OR.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short OX = SAMTag.OX.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short PG = SAMTag.PG.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short PQ = SAMTag.PQ.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short PT = SAMTag.PT.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short PU = SAMTag.PU.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short QT = SAMTag.QT.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short Q2 = SAMTag.Q2.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short QX = SAMTag.QX.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short R2 = SAMTag.R2.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short RG = SAMTag.RG.getBinaryTag();
-    /** @deprecated use BC instead */
-    @Deprecated
-    public static final short RT = SAMTag.RT.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short RX = SAMTag.RX.getBinaryTag();
-    /** @deprecated reserved tag for backwards compatibility only */
-    @Deprecated
-    public static final short S2 = SAMTag.S2.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short SA = SAMTag.SA.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short SM = SAMTag.SM.getBinaryTag();
-    /** @deprecated reserved tag for backwards compatibility only */
-    @Deprecated
-    public static final short SQ = SAMTag.SQ.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short TC = SAMTag.TC.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short U2 = SAMTag.U2.getBinaryTag();
-    public static final short UQ = SAMTag.UQ.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short AM = SAMTag.AM.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short AS = SAMTag.AS.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short BC = SAMTag.BC.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short BQ = SAMTag.BQ.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short BZ = SAMTag.BZ.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short CB = SAMTag.CB.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short CC = SAMTag.CC.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short CG = SAMTag.CG.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short CM = SAMTag.CM.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short CO = SAMTag.CO.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short CP = SAMTag.CP.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short CQ = SAMTag.CQ.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short CR = SAMTag.CR.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short CS = SAMTag.CS.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short CT = SAMTag.CT.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short CY = SAMTag.CY.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short E2 = SAMTag.E2.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short FI = SAMTag.FI.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short FS = SAMTag.FS.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short FT = SAMTag.FT.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short FZ = SAMTag.FZ.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short GC = SAMTag.GC.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short GS = SAMTag.GS.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short GQ = SAMTag.GQ.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short LB = SAMTag.LB.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short H0 = SAMTag.H0.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short H1 = SAMTag.H1.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short H2 = SAMTag.H2.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short HI = SAMTag.HI.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short IH = SAMTag.IH.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short MC = SAMTag.MC.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short MF = SAMTag.MF.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short MI = SAMTag.MI.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short MD = SAMTag.MD.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short MQ = SAMTag.MQ.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short NH = SAMTag.NH.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short NM = SAMTag.NM.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short OQ = SAMTag.OQ.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short OP = SAMTag.OP.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short OC = SAMTag.OC.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short OF = SAMTag.OF.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short OR = SAMTag.OR.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short OX = SAMTag.OX.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short PG = SAMTag.PG.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short PQ = SAMTag.PQ.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short PT = SAMTag.PT.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short PU = SAMTag.PU.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short QT = SAMTag.QT.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short Q2 = SAMTag.Q2.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short QX = SAMTag.QX.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short R2 = SAMTag.R2.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short RG = SAMTag.RG.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short RT = SAMTag.RT.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short RX = SAMTag.RX.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short S2 = SAMTag.S2.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short SA = SAMTag.SA.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short SM = SAMTag.SM.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short SQ = SAMTag.SQ.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short TC = SAMTag.TC.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short U2 = SAMTag.U2.getBinaryTag();
+    /** @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#getBinaryTag()} instead. */
+    @Deprecated public final short UQ = SAMTag.UQ.getBinaryTag();
 
-    @Deprecated
     private static final SAMTagUtil SINGLETON = new SAMTagUtil();
 
-    // Cache of already-converted tags.  Should speed up SAM text generation.
-    // Not synchronized because race condition is not a problem.
-    private static final String[] stringTags = new String[Short.MAX_VALUE];
-
     /**
      * Despite the fact that this class has state, it should be thread-safe because the cache
      * gets filled with the same values by any thread.
-     * @deprecated All methods on this class have been made static, use them directly
+     * @deprecated use the static methods in {@link SAMTag} instead
      */
     @Deprecated
     public static SAMTagUtil getSingleton() {
@@ -140,8 +179,10 @@ public static SAMTagUtil getSingleton() {
      *
      * @param tag 2-character String representation of a tag name.
      * @return Tag name packed as 2 ASCII bytes in a short.
+     * @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#makeBinaryTag(String) instead}
      */
-    public static short makeBinaryTag(final String tag) {
+    @Deprecated
+    public short makeBinaryTag(final String tag) {
         return SAMTag.makeBinaryTag(tag);
     }
 
@@ -150,16 +191,10 @@ public static short makeBinaryTag(final String tag) {
      *
      * @param tag Tag name packed as 2 ASCII bytes in a short.
      * @return 2-character String representation of a tag name.
+     * @deprecated use {@link SAMTag#makeStringTag(short)} instead
      */
-    public static String makeStringTag(final short tag) {
-        String ret = stringTags[tag];
-        if (ret == null) {
-            final byte[] stringConversionBuf = new byte[2];
-            stringConversionBuf[0] = (byte)(tag & 0xff);
-            stringConversionBuf[1] = (byte)((tag >> 8) & 0xff);
-            ret = StringUtil.bytesToString(stringConversionBuf);
-            stringTags[tag] = ret;
-        }
-        return ret;
+    @Deprecated
+    public String makeStringTag(final short tag) {
+      return SAMTag.makeStringTag(tag);
     }
 }
diff --git a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMTextWriter.java b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMTextWriter.java
index ac7eaa6af4..bf54e773d0 100644
--- a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMTextWriter.java
+++ b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMTextWriter.java
@@ -157,9 +157,9 @@ public void writeAlignment(final SAMRecord alignment) {
                 out.write(FIELD_SEPARATOR);
                 final String encodedTag;
                 if (attribute.isUnsignedArray()) {
-                    encodedTag = tagCodec.encodeUnsignedArray(SAMTagUtil.makeStringTag(attribute.tag), attribute.value);
+                    encodedTag = tagCodec.encodeUnsignedArray(SAMTag.makeStringTag(attribute.tag), attribute.value);
                 } else {
-                    encodedTag = tagCodec.encode(SAMTagUtil.makeStringTag(attribute.tag), attribute.value);
+                    encodedTag = tagCodec.encode(SAMTag.makeStringTag(attribute.tag), attribute.value);
                 }
                 out.write(encodedTag);
                 attribute = attribute.getNext();
diff --git a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/cram/digest/ContentDigests.java b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/cram/digest/ContentDigests.java
index 00a34b8961..6b4a340bec 100644
--- a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/cram/digest/ContentDigests.java
+++ b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/cram/digest/ContentDigests.java
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 
 import htsjdk.samtools.SAMBinaryTagAndValue;
 import htsjdk.samtools.SAMRecord;
-import htsjdk.samtools.SAMTagUtil;
+import htsjdk.samtools.SAMTag;
 import htsjdk.samtools.cram.structure.CramCompressionRecord;
 import htsjdk.samtools.util.Log;
 
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ public static ContentDigests create(final SAMBinaryTagAndValue binaryTags) {
         final List<Digester> digesters = new LinkedList<ContentDigests.Digester>();
         SAMBinaryTagAndValue binaryTag = binaryTags;
         while (binaryTag != null) {
-            final String tagID = SAMTagUtil.makeStringTag(
+            final String tagID = SAMTag.makeStringTag(
                     binaryTag.tag);
             final KNOWN_DIGESTS hash;
             try {
@@ -131,7 +131,7 @@ private static class Digester {
             this.digest = digest;
             this.series = series;
             this.tagID = tagID;
-            this.tagCode = SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag(tagID);
+            this.tagCode = SAMTag.makeBinaryTag(tagID);
         }
 
         void add(final SAMRecord record) {
diff --git a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/cram/structure/ReadTag.java b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/cram/structure/ReadTag.java
index 3704e6bafb..0bbe117869 100644
--- a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/cram/structure/ReadTag.java
+++ b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/cram/structure/ReadTag.java
@@ -17,14 +17,8 @@
  */
 package htsjdk.samtools.cram.structure;
 
-import htsjdk.samtools.SAMException;
-import htsjdk.samtools.SAMFormatException;
+import htsjdk.samtools.*;
 import htsjdk.samtools.SAMRecord.SAMTagAndValue;
-import htsjdk.samtools.SAMTagUtil;
-import htsjdk.samtools.SAMUtils;
-import htsjdk.samtools.SAMValidationError;
-import htsjdk.samtools.TagValueAndUnsignedArrayFlag;
-import htsjdk.samtools.ValidationStringency;
 import htsjdk.samtools.util.StringUtil;
 
 import java.nio.ByteBuffer;
@@ -62,7 +56,7 @@ public ReadTag(final int id, final byte[] dataAsByteArray, ValidationStringency
 
         keyType3BytesAsInt = id;
 
-        code = SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag(this.key);
+        code = SAMTag.makeBinaryTag(this.key);
     }
 
     private ReadTag(final String key, final char type, final Object value) {
@@ -86,7 +80,7 @@ private ReadTag(final String key, final char type, final Object value) {
         keyType3Bytes = this.key + this.type;
         keyType3BytesAsInt = nameType3BytesToInt(this.key, this.type);
 
-        code = SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag(this.key);
+        code = SAMTag.makeBinaryTag(this.key);
     }
 
     public static int name3BytesToInt(final byte[] name) {
diff --git a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/cram/structure/Slice.java b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/cram/structure/Slice.java
index 2df2130e42..a68a5c19bc 100644
--- a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/cram/structure/Slice.java
+++ b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/cram/structure/Slice.java
@@ -185,7 +185,7 @@ public void setRefMD5(final byte[] ref) {
 
     /**
      * Get tag value attached to the slice.
-     * @param tag tag ID as a short integer as returned by {@link htsjdk.samtools.SAMTagUtil#makeBinaryTag(java.lang.String)}
+     * @param tag tag ID as a short integer as returned by {@link SAMTag#makeBinaryTag(String)}
      * @return a value of the tag
      */
     public Object getAttribute(final short tag) {
@@ -199,14 +199,14 @@ public Object getAttribute(final short tag) {
 
     /**
      * Set a value for the tag.
-     * @param tag tag ID as a short integer as returned by {@link htsjdk.samtools.SAMTagUtil#makeBinaryTag(java.lang.String)}
+     * @param tag tag ID as a short integer as returned by {@link SAMTag#makeBinaryTag(String)}
      * @param value tag value
      */
     public void setAttribute(final String tag, final Object value) {
         if (value != null && value.getClass().isArray() && Array.getLength(value) == 0) {
             throw new IllegalArgumentException("Empty value passed for tag " + tag);
         }
-        setAttribute(SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag(tag), value);
+        setAttribute(SAMTag.makeBinaryTag(tag), value);
     }
 
     public void setUnsignedArrayAttribute(final String tag, final Object value) {
@@ -216,7 +216,7 @@ public void setUnsignedArrayAttribute(final String tag, final Object value) {
         if (Array.getLength(value) == 0) {
             throw new IllegalArgumentException("Empty array passed to setUnsignedArrayAttribute for tag " + tag);
         }
-        setAttribute(SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag(tag), value, true);
+        setAttribute(SAMTag.makeBinaryTag(tag), value, true);
     }
 
     void setAttribute(final short tag, final Object value) {
diff --git a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/cram/structure/SliceIO.java b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/cram/structure/SliceIO.java
index 9872e12bd1..c5958209a8 100644
--- a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/cram/structure/SliceIO.java
+++ b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/cram/structure/SliceIO.java
@@ -17,10 +17,7 @@
  */
 package htsjdk.samtools.cram.structure;
 
-import htsjdk.samtools.BinaryTagCodec;
-import htsjdk.samtools.SAMBinaryTagAndValue;
-import htsjdk.samtools.SAMTagUtil;
-import htsjdk.samtools.ValidationStringency;
+import htsjdk.samtools.*;
 import htsjdk.samtools.cram.common.CramVersions;
 import htsjdk.samtools.cram.io.CramIntArray;
 import htsjdk.samtools.cram.io.ITF8;
@@ -66,7 +63,7 @@ private static void parseSliceHeaderBlock(final int major, final Slice slice) th
 
             SAMBinaryTagAndValue tags = slice.sliceTags;
             while (tags != null) {
-                log.debug(String.format("Found slice tag: %s", SAMTagUtil.makeStringTag(tags.tag)));
+                log.debug(String.format("Found slice tag: %s", SAMTag.makeStringTag(tags.tag)));
                 tags = tags.getNext();
             }
         }
@@ -95,7 +92,7 @@ private static byte[] createSliceHeaderBlockContent(final int major, final Slice
                 final BinaryTagCodec binaryTagCodec = new BinaryTagCodec(binaryCoded);
                 SAMBinaryTagAndValue samBinaryTagAndValue = slice.sliceTags;
                 do {
-                    log.debug("Writing slice tag: " + SAMTagUtil.makeStringTag(samBinaryTagAndValue.tag));
+                    log.debug("Writing slice tag: " + SAMTag.makeStringTag(samBinaryTagAndValue.tag));
                     binaryTagCodec.writeTag(samBinaryTagAndValue.tag, samBinaryTagAndValue.value, samBinaryTagAndValue.isUnsignedArray());
                 } while ((samBinaryTagAndValue = samBinaryTagAndValue.getNext()) != null);
                 // BinaryCodec doesn't seem to cache things.
diff --git a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/sra/SRALazyRecord.java b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/sra/SRALazyRecord.java
index fb8dbdd802..418ee3af2f 100644
--- a/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/sra/SRALazyRecord.java
+++ b/src/main/java/htsjdk/samtools/sra/SRALazyRecord.java
@@ -667,7 +667,7 @@ protected SAMBinaryTagAndValue getBinaryAttributes() {
 
     @Override
     public boolean isUnsignedArrayAttribute(final String tag) {
-        Short binaryTag = SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag(tag);
+        Short binaryTag = SAMTag.makeBinaryTag(tag);
         LazyAttribute attr = lazyAttributeTags.get(binaryTag);
         if (attr != null && !initializedAttributes.contains(attr)) {
             getAttribute(binaryTag);
diff --git a/src/test/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMBinaryTagAndValueUnitTest.java b/src/test/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMBinaryTagAndValueUnitTest.java
index 7db32da8f5..06e41ee195 100644
--- a/src/test/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMBinaryTagAndValueUnitTest.java
+++ b/src/test/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMBinaryTagAndValueUnitTest.java
@@ -39,7 +39,7 @@ public void test_isAllowedAttribute(final Object value) {
 
     @Test(dataProvider="allowedAttributeTypes")
     public void test_isAllowedConstructor(final Object value) {
-        Assert.assertNotNull(new SAMBinaryTagAndValue(SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag("UI"), value));
+        Assert.assertNotNull(new SAMBinaryTagAndValue(SAMTag.makeBinaryTag("UI"), value));
     }
 
     @DataProvider(name="notAllowedAttributeTypes")
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ public void test_isNotAllowedAttribute(final Object value) {
 
     @Test(dataProvider="notAllowedAttributeTypes", expectedExceptions=IllegalArgumentException.class)
     public void test_isNotAllowedConstructor(final Object value) {
-        new SAMBinaryTagAndValue(SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag("ZZ"), value);
+        new SAMBinaryTagAndValue(SAMTag.makeBinaryTag("ZZ"), value);
     }
 
     @DataProvider(name="allowedUnsignedArrayTypes")
@@ -75,7 +75,7 @@ public Object[][] allowedUnsignedArrayTypes() {
 
     @Test(dataProvider="allowedUnsignedArrayTypes")
     public void test_isAllowedUnsignedArrayAttribute(final Object value) {
-        final short binaryTag = SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag("UI");
+        final short binaryTag = SAMTag.makeBinaryTag("UI");
         Assert.assertNotNull(new SAMBinaryTagAndUnsignedArrayValue(binaryTag, value));
     }
 
@@ -89,13 +89,13 @@ public Object[][] notAllowedUnsignedArrayTypes() {
 
     @Test(dataProvider="notAllowedUnsignedArrayTypes", expectedExceptions=IllegalArgumentException.class)
     public void test_isNotAllowedUnsignedArrayAttribute(final Object value) {
-        final short binaryTag = SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag("UI");
+        final short binaryTag = SAMTag.makeBinaryTag("UI");
         new SAMBinaryTagAndUnsignedArrayValue(binaryTag, value);
     }
 
     @DataProvider(name="hashCopyEquals")
     public Object[][] hashCopyEquals() {
-        final short tag = SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag("UI");
+        final short tag = SAMTag.makeBinaryTag("UI");
         return new Object[][] {
                 {new SAMBinaryTagAndValue(tag, new String("a string")), new SAMBinaryTagAndValue(tag, new String("a string")), true, true},
                 {new SAMBinaryTagAndValue(tag, new String("a string")), new SAMBinaryTagAndValue(tag, new String("different string")), false, false},
diff --git a/src/test/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMRecordUnitTest.java b/src/test/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMRecordUnitTest.java
index 5231a0e05b..f4757d56d7 100644
--- a/src/test/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMRecordUnitTest.java
+++ b/src/test/java/htsjdk/samtools/SAMRecordUnitTest.java
@@ -335,7 +335,7 @@ private SAMRecord testDeepCopy(SAMRecord sam) {
     @Test
     public void test_getUnsignedIntegerAttribute_valid() {
         final String stringTag = "UI";
-        final short binaryTag = SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag(stringTag);
+        final short binaryTag = SAMTag.makeBinaryTag(stringTag);
         SAMFileHeader header = new SAMFileHeader();
         SAMRecord record = new SAMRecord(header);
         Assert.assertNull(record.getUnsignedIntegerAttribute(stringTag));
@@ -374,7 +374,7 @@ record = new SAMRecord(header){
      */
     @Test
     public void test_getUnsignedIntegerAttribute_valid_alternative() {
-        final short tag = SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag("UI");
+        final short tag = SAMTag.makeBinaryTag("UI");
         SAMFileHeader header = new SAMFileHeader();
         SAMRecord record;
 
@@ -457,7 +457,7 @@ public void test_setAttribute_unsigned_int_tooLarge() {
 
     @Test
     public void test_setAttribute_null_removes_tag() {
-        final short tag = SAMTagUtil.makeBinaryTag("UI");
+        final short tag = SAMTag.makeBinaryTag("UI");
         SAMFileHeader header = new SAMFileHeader();
         SAMRecord record = new SAMRecord(header);
         Assert.assertNull(record.getUnsignedIntegerAttribute(tag));