The Covington leader. (Covington, Tenn.) 18??-current, 1918-01-17
VALUABLE INFORMATION
ABOUT THE INCOME TAX

Nashville Tenn, December Ia, 1917.
You won't have to figure out your
income tax all by yourself hereafter.
The government is going to send out
men to help you. It will be up to
you to hunt up these men who will
be sent into every county seat town
and some other towns besides. to
meet the people. Postmasters, bank
ers and newspapers will later be able
to tell you when the governments
income tax man will be around and
where to find him. He will answer
your questions and assist you in
preparing your returns correctly. Re-
turns of income for 1917 must be
made between January l and March
!, 1918.
''The government recognizes" Col
lector of Internal Revenue E. B. Craig
said today, "that many persons ex-
perience a good deal Of difficulty in
filing out income tax forms. 1t rec
ognizes, too, that taxpayers residing
at points where collectors offices are
not easily accessible, find it hard to
get proper instruction in the law.
Next year, when every married per-
son living with wife or husband and
having a net income of $4,000, and
every unmarried person not the head
of a family and having net income
of $1,000, for the year 1917, must
make return of income on the form
prescribed, there will be hundreds IN
every community seeking light on the
law, and help in executing their re-
turns. My own and every other col
lection district in the nation will be
divided into districts, with the county
as the unit, and government officer
informed in the income tax, assigned
to each district. He will spend hard
ly less than a week in each county,
and in some counties longer time,
very likely at the courthouse at the
county seat town. In cities where
there are collectors branch offices, he
will be there, and in other cities, pos
sibly at the city hall. My office will
in due time advise postmasters and
bankers and send out notices to the
newspapers stating when the officer
will be in each county. 1t will be UNI
necessary for prospective taxpayers 70
ask nv office for forms on which to
make returns unless they fail to hunt
10 the officer who will be sent to
their county. The officer who visits
their county will have them
at may be stated as a matter ol
general information that net income,
IS the remainder after subtractlng
expenses from gross income, except
that personal family or living eX-
pense is not expense in the meaning
Of the law, the exemption beng al
lowed to cover such expenses
"The new exemptions Of $1,000 and
$4,000 will add tens of thousands 70
the number of income tax payers IN
this district, inasmuch as practically
every farmer. merchant, tradesmah'
professional man and salary worker
and d great many wage workers Will
be required to make return and pay
tax.
"The law makes it the duty OF the
taxnaver to seek out the collector
MANY people assume that # an IN
come tax form is not sent, or a gov
eminent officer does not call, they are
relieved from making a report. ms
i decidedly in error 1t is the other
wav round. The taxpayer has to go
to the government, and if he doesn't
do ii within the time prescribed, he
il d violator Of the law, and the gov
eminent will 60 to him with its pen
alties."