IRS - National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee https://nwtrcc.org/tags/irs/ Wed, 01 Aug 2018 17:54:20 +0000 en-US hourly 1 Celebrating a Triumph over the IRS, with Redirection https://nwtrcc.org/2018/08/01/celebrating-a-triumph-over-the-irs-with-redirection/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=celebrating-a-triumph-over-the-irs-with-redirection https://nwtrcc.org/2018/08/01/celebrating-a-triumph-over-the-irs-with-redirection/#comments Wed, 01 Aug 2018 16:54:23 +0000 https://nwtrcc.org/?p=8696 For the first time this year one of my outstanding tax debts hit the ten-year statute of limitations for collection. During those ten years, the IRS sent me increasingly exasperated letters, threatened me with thousands of dollars of interest & penalties, and even seized $469 from my bank account once. But this year the remaining... Continue reading

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]]> For the first time this year one of my outstanding tax debts hit the ten-year statute of limitations for collection. During those ten years, the IRS sent me increasingly exasperated letters, threatened me with thousands of dollars of interest & penalties, and even seized $469 from my bank account once. But this year the remaining $3,226 I owed slipped permanently out of their reach, and the interest & penalties evaporated too.

I called their bluff, waited them out, and won (well, except for that $469).

(Note: this statute of limitations does not apply to people who refuse to file returns, or if the IRS can show that you did not file honestly, correctly, and completely. It only applies if you file but don’t pay.)

In 2011 the I.R.S. had 12,101 examination enforcement staff and 3,733 collection enforcement staff; the numbers have fallen each year, such that in 2015, the agency had 9,189 examination enforcement staff and 2,612 collection enforcement staff.

Fewer IRS staff means less collections.

I didn’t make things easy for the IRS. I followed some of the advice in NWTRCC’s Practical War Tax Resistance pamphlet #3 (“How to Resist Collection, or Make the Most of Collection When It Occurs”). But I didn’t go to extraordinary lengths to hide my assets or drop into the underground economy. I’m certain the IRS knows of some things they could seize. I guess they’ve just been too busy to get around to it.

I Joined the Redirectors

This is also the first year I’ve redirected my taxes. In the past I’d been afraid that if I redirected my taxes and then the government also seized them from me that I’d go broke by paying double. (At least, thanks to the War Tax Resisters Penalty Fund, I don’t have to worry about going broke from the interest and penalties!) But this year, because I got away with it for the most part, I can redirect the successfully resisted money without concern.

I sent my $3,226 to the Prisoners Literature Project, an all-volunteer group that sends free books to prisoners throughout the United States. My donation will pay for the postage on hundreds of packages, and for the purchase of dictionaries and other such high-demand books.

I made sure to let the Prisoners Literature Project know that the donation was coming from redirected taxes. And I informed our local war tax resisters’ alternative fund — the People’s Life Fund — about my donation so they can add it to their tally (they’ve already given away over $65,000 in resisted war taxes this year, joining several other such funds that coordinate war tax redirection).

Chanticleer

And I Made Some Noise

I also took some time to crow on social media about what I’d done so that news of my triumph over the IRS might spread. I hoped my example might encourage more people I know to consider resistance, and so I looked the example of another war tax resister I respect who opted “to brag as lustily as Chanticleer in the morning, standing on his roost, if only to wake my neighbors up.”

It’s been a joy to join the redirectors. I’ve long been envious of that path of war tax resistance, and I’m delighted to finally feel able to participate.

Post by David Gross

Here’s another example from our archives of a war tax resister beating the statute of limitations. It’s actually very common for the IRS to fail to pursue even the tax debts it knows about, even when there’s money on the table. There’s no guarantee you’ll be one of the lucky ones, but you won’t know until you try!

This post appears in the upcoming Aug/Sep 2018 NWTRCC newsletter. Check out back issues here!

The post Celebrating a Triumph over the IRS, with Redirection first appeared on National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee.

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]]> https://nwtrcc.org/2018/08/01/celebrating-a-triumph-over-the-irs-with-redirection/feed/ 2 Ways to Deal with the IRS https://nwtrcc.org/2014/01/10/ways-to-deal-with-the-irs/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=ways-to-deal-with-the-irs Fri, 10 Jan 2014 16:48:36 +0000 http://nwtrcc.org/blog/?p=216 While it would be great if we could have conversations with the DoD or Pentagon directly, for many war tax resisters our primary government contact is with the IRS. Beginning with the choice of whether or not to file an income tax return for Tax Day, our choice of resistance tactics can affect the type... Continue reading

The post Ways to Deal with the IRS first appeared on National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee.

The post Ways to Deal with the IRS appeared first on National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee.

]]> While it would be great if we could have conversations with the DoD or Pentagon directly, for many war tax resisters our primary government contact is with the IRS. Beginning with the choice of whether or not to file an income tax return for Tax Day, our choice of resistance tactics can affect the type of attention we get from the IRS. Living on a low income may greatly reduce the possibility of IRS contact, for example. For those who do resist filing and/or payment of taxes, however, some resisters don’t hear at all from the IRS for years and years, while others are frequently contacted and collected on (and most find themselves somewhere inbetween these extremes)

(“April 15” artwork by Doug Minkler)

(“April 15” artwork by Doug Minkler)

Those of us lucky (or “lucky,” if you prefer) enough to get IRS attention for our resistance then have to decide how to deal with this attention. Do we send letters with our returns or respond to their letters? Do we return phone calls? Do we meet with agents? If so, what do we say?

When it comes to the possibility of levying bank accounts, garnishing wages, etc.: Do we try to be “uncollectable” by keeping any money or property we have out of sight or out of our names? Do we view collection as inevitable and refuse to try to obscure our accounts?

There’s no right answer to these questions. Each war tax resister gets to decide what their best course of action is. NWTRCC has counselors available to discuss options with you and help you clarify your goals and reasoning. We also have a great deal of resources in our Practical War Tax Resistance series, newsletters, and all over our website.

 

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