The Holbrook news., 1919-03-07
THIS TELLS HOW TO
 FIGURE INCOME TAX
SquareIy Up to Every Individual to Get Busy by March 15
 or Suffer Penalty.

March 10th, for paying your Income Tax and making your return. Avoid the last minute rush. Any person can | figure out his liability today as well as he can next week, and if there is any point on which he needs advice he can now get in touch with a Revenue man"
 This word of advice is from Alfred Franklin, Collector of Internal Reve- nue, Phoenix, Ariz., who is collecting the Income Tax in Arizona and New Mexico. Collector Franklin is giving without charge every aid of his office and his enlarged field force to help the people get their payments and their returns in by March 18th.
 But the Income Tax men will not pull your door-bell or your coat-tails, according to the Collectors announce ment. It is squarely up to every indi- vidual to figure out his own case and to get busy if he comes within the scope of the new Revenue law.
 Did You Earn This Much7
 Every unmarried person who receiv- ed income averaging $19.25 a week during 1918 and every married couple who jointly received income averaging $3S.50 a week should secure at once from the nearest Deputy Collector or the nearest bank blank Form 1040 A. That form contains the information he will need to enable him to figure his correct net income and any tax that he owes the Government.
 The law requires that every unmar- ried person who had a net income of $1, 900 or over and every married per son whose net income was $2,000 or over (ncluding the income of husband or wife, and the earnings of minor children, if any) must make a return on or before March 15th And this re- quirement does not hinge on whether the person owes a tax.
 Taxable Income.
 An individual must include under gross income all gains, profits and in- come derived from salaries, wages, or compensation for personal service of whatever kind and in whatever form paid, or from professions, vacations, business, sales or dealings in property of all kinds, interest, rent, dividends,
 
 whatever. Very few items of income are exempt.
 Deductions include ordinary and nee essary business expenses, interest paid or accrued on indebtedness, taxes of all kinds except Federal income and excess profits taxes and assessments for local benefits, losses actually sus- tained, debts ascertained to be worth less, and depreciation on buildings, ma chinery, fixtures, etc, used in business. A further deduction Is allowed for con- tributions to corporations operated for religious, charitable, scientific or edu- catlonal purposes or for the prevention of cruelty to children or animals to an amount not exceeding 15 per cent of the taxpayers net income as computed without the benefit of the contribution deduction.
 The taxpayer is not allowed to de- duct any personal, living or family ex- pense, any amount spent for improving property, or any expense of restoring property or making good its exhaus- ton for which an allowance is claimed under depreciation.
 Figuring the Tax.
 Before figuring the normal tax the dividends are deducted as credits from net income, together with the personal exemption. As in previous years, divi- dends of domestic corporations are ex- empt from normal tax when received by the stockholder.
 The normal tax rates for citizens fcy fn11 nr, first $4,000 of net income in excess of the credits the rate is per cent; on any further taxable income the rate is 12 per cent.
 The surtax rates apply to net in- come of each individual in excess of $5,000. The personal exemption and the dividends are not deductible before computing surtax. In the case of re- turns by husband and wife, the net income of each is considered separate Iy in computing any surtax that may be due Form 104O should be used for making returns of net income exceed ing $5,000, and the instructions on that form will show how to figure the sur tax.
 Business House Returns. Employers and others who paid wages, salaries, rents, interest or sim liar determinable gains in an amount of $1,000 or over during 1918 to any person must file an information return with the Government. Blanks may be secured from the Collector.
 Every partnership must file return showing its income and deductions and the name and address of each partner, with his share of the profits or losses during the past year. Personal service corporations will file similar informa- tion for 1918.