University Daily Kansan / Monday, April 8, 1991 9 Number of war protesters who won't pay taxes grows War-tax resisters won't help U.S. pay costs of war The Associated Press INDIANAPOLIS — Glenda Rae Hernandez has not paid federal income tax for more than 20 years. Peter D. Smith has withheld about 60 percent of his taxes each year since 1969 The two South Bend, Ind., residents do not keep their delinquency a secret. They are part of a war-tax resisters movement that organizers say is 100,000 strong and more deterred ever in the gulf war's aftermath. "There's no question about it, we're growing," said Carolyn Stevens of the Seattle-based War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee, which represents about 100 national organizations have been flooded with inquiries on how to go about it. Who knows what will happen on April 15?" Despite the nation's swell of patriotism with the success of Operation Desert Storm, U.S. citizens opposed to military build-up say the conflict underscores one of their points: War is expensive. Government officials say that the war cost from $40 billion to more than $54 billion. "That money takes away from the other needs of society, like school and community services," said Vicki Rovere of the New York-based War League. The league was founded in 1923 and has about 15,000 members, she said. "If I was mugged and killed on the street, that is symptomatic. . . . I would consider myself a war casu- mant in an indirect way." Rovere said Many of today's war-tax resisters got their start during the anti-Vietnam War movement of the 1960s. Now, organizers hope for a new generation of younger resisters who opposed the U.S.-led campaign against Iraq. They say the numerous nationwide protests during the gulf war tell them there is the potential that many more U.S. citizens will not be paying their taxes this year. "It can be said that all Americans were thrilled by the so-called victory," said John Lelone, a co-ordinator of the Seattle-based Concord Military Tax Campaign, which has about 2,000 members nationwide. "People who had a rough time with the war are asking. 'What can we do so this won't happen again?' And we say, 'Don't pay taxes.' " Hernandez said she and her husband always filed a return and stated they would not be paying any income taxes. "I think you do see more resisters in times of actual conflict. It hits home more," Hernandez said, adding that Internal Revenue Service officials steal money from the federal government each year to cover their tax and penalties. With an estimated 100,000 participants, the war-tax resistance movement does not compare to the millions of U.S. citizens who, without political motivation, either cheat on their tax forms or don't pay at all. IRS officials say that $55 billion to $100 billion in tax money is owed to the U.S. government. Carolyn Stumpf of the IRS office in Indianapolis said the agency did not treat war-tax resisters any differ- ent from anyone else who failed to pay taxes. The War Resisters League is helping to organize a national campaign dubbed the "Alternative Revenue Service," aimed at galvanizing the movement. "Tax cheating, whether it's a protest or out-and-out cheating, only cheats your taxpaying neighbor," she said. "The programs that get cut are not war programs but human services." More than 70,000 forms showing exactly howto withhold the tax have been sent nationwide, said league representative Lisa Harper. Nationwide rallies also are planned by the IRS on April 15, the deadline for filing taxes. Smith and his wife, Elllyn Stecker, have been withholding about 60 percent of the income tax for 23 years. The percentage is the amount estimated to go to the military and the national debt, which has been incurred in part through past military expenses. Smith said he and his wife ultimately paid more than double for what they believe in. They redirect the withheld money to peace groups, and the IRS seizes their assets to recover the amounts the owe, in turn, to pay them back at the end of each year they owe the IRS $8,000 to $9,000. "It a matter of conscience," said Smith, who served four years in the Army from 1960s. "It empowers the person you feel I can have to say. 'There's nothing I can do.'" Dangers hound mail carriers Sexual advances, nudism and animals hamper delivery efforts The Associated Press A recent incident in Syracuse, N.Y., attracted attention when a woman demanded her mailman also deliver as a male-man. WASHINGTON — Rain, sleet and gloom of night may not discourage a mail carrier, but aggressive women, bees, hawks and dogs sure can. He resisted. Delivery desisted. However, West said that it was the first incident he had heard of where there was a cutoff of the mail. Having people make sexual advances toward letter carriers is not unheard of, said Robert West of the U.S. Postal Service. Asked if it might be that not all carriers would complain about sexual advances, West responded, 'There's no time allowance.' for that. Having the postal service decline to deliver can result from something as mundane as a missing mailbox. or something as exotic as indism. A carrier once declined to deliver to a mulist colony near Tampa. Fla. to build a built a wall to screen their ideality. West said that for the most part mail was stopped for safety reasons. These problems are usually resolved quickly. However, no national statistics are kept. "These decisions are made at the local level," said Richard McKillop, also of the delivery management team when the case gets appealed up. The World Series earthquake, the eruption of Mount St. Helens — those were ample reasons for mail not to get through for a few days, said postal representative Bil Paul of San Jose, Calif. "Fraud is another reason," McKillip said. "If a company is found to be committing mail fraud, delivery can be blocked by the Postal Inspection Service." Beees sometimes nest in or near rural mailboxes, causing carriers to stay away. McKillip said. Other hazards are presented by porches or driveways under repair and rural roads that become muddy or unsafe. Drew VerBen, a representative for the National Association of Letter Carriers, said that there had been a couple of cases when delivery was stopped for a period in crime-rate reports. It has been considered too dangerous to enter. Occasionally, a carrier will be threatened if a check or other item does not arrive as expected, he said. Paul, who says he cut his teeth as a carrier in housing projects in San Francisco, said he developed a kind of 360-degree vision in high-crime But both agreed that halting the mail because of crime was unusual. areas. Dangerous animals were mentioned again and again as the problem most likely to cause a cutoff. The animals are not always pets. Mississippi kite hawks began attacking a mail carrier in Snyder, Texas. Although the birds have a 2-foot wingspan, carrier Patt Wittie said that when they dive-bombed, you would swear the span was closer to 8 feet. She contacted state officials after the birds knocked mail out of her hand and knocked off her helmet, but she found that nothing could be done because the hawks were an endangered species. A temporary cluster of mailboxes was set up away from the birds until they finished nesting. Brown dropped an item, reached into some weeds to retrieve it and was bitten. He continued his appointed rounds for about 20 minutes before the pain and swelling convinced him the bite was serious. Carrier Ed Brown of Brady, Texas, spent four days in hospital after his seizure. He is 8 and 1/2 years old. Despite the occasional encounter with snakes, tigers, alligators and other exotic animals, dogs get the most attention. this year, 113 million taxpayers are expected to file federal income tax returns. Here is what happens to your return once it is filed. How paper returns are processed Complete your return and mail it to the processing center. Returns are opened, and payments are credited to taxpayers' accounts and deposited in the U.S. Treasury Returns are sorted, checked for accuracy, edited and coded for computer entry. Tax data is placed on magnetic tape. 5 Data is checked by IRS computers for accuracy. D D D Tapes are sent to the "master file at the computing center in Martinsburg, W.Va. Refunds are mailed from regional disbursing centers or collection notices are sent to taxpayers. Percent who prepare their own tax returns Percent of 1040 returns with itemized deductions Do own Electronic returns - refund only Number of 1989 returns audited: 985,000 Number of IRS workers at peak: 120,000 Research: PAT CARR and WENDY GOVIER SOURCES: Internal Revenue Service, HBR Block Bring Form 1040 to a qualified tax preparer. Either complete the form yourself or have the preparer do it. Sign Form 8453, authorizing transmission of the tax data. This form and your W-2 are mailed to the IRS. 3 Preparer enters data into computer and sends it directly to IRS computer. Are the same steps as paper returns 5 and 6 6 Refunds are sent Choices for obtaining refund ■ "Refund anticipation loan" - Within six days, tax preparer gives taxpayer an advance refund check of $300 to $3,000. The IRS sends refund to the tax preparer's bank Direct deposit to your bank account, within three or four weeks - Refund check sent directly to you from IRS, within three or four weeks *Master file on the central computer 1. The computer 2. Processes data for notices and refunds This confidential file contains all data about taxpayers' accounts. The computer compares this data with the taped information from your return. The caregivers. - Checks on late filings and failures to file returns - Determines whether you owe other taxes - Classifies returns for auditing - Tips for filling • File early. Refund checks for returns filed in. - Use IRS's bar-coded envelope and address label Tips for filing ■ File early. Refund checks for returns filed in January are sent within four weeks; for returns filed April 15, they are mailed within eight weeks ■ Round off cents to dollars. Round off cents to dollars Make sure you signed the return Toll-free number for information 1-800-829-1040 Knight Ridder-Tribune News MARTY WESTMAN SEE THE CLASSIFIEDS Have an opinion? Write a "letter to the editor"! 111 Stauffer-Flint Hall, Lawrence, Kansas 60454 1527 W. 6th KU STUDENT BIOETHICS CLUB "THE ELDERLY: WHO CARES?" Thursday, April 11th Kansas Union--Jayhawk Room, 7:00 p.m. For more information call: Vance 843-1122 ... 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