The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1922-05-03
QUICKER AUDIT OF
INCOME TAX RETURN
Plan Branch Office of Rev
enue Bureau On the
Pacific Coast
BULK OF RETURNS
HANDLED THERE
Only Incomes In Excess of $4,000 TO
BE Sent to Washington - Treasury
Department Thinks 1t Will Expedite
Audit and Ratification of Returns.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.


Especial Dispatch to The Reformer,)
WASHINGTON, May 3.-"We- will
send the government to the people instead
of making the people come to the govern
ment," said Elmer Dover, assistant sec
rotary of the treasury, yesterday in out
lining to this correspondent the plan he
has in mind whereby every taxpayer in
the United States will be able to ascer-
tain Immediately the exact status of his
income tax return.
Under the present system trip to
Washington is necessary in order to
learn how far the income tax bureau
has progressed in auditing the back re
turns.
American business concerns have been
kept on the anxious seat over long pc
riods of time because of uncertainty
whether they have calculated their taxes
correctly. The new plan would speed mp
the auditing and especially would make
available in a day information which
takes months now to ferret out.
Can Work in Regional Offices.
Mr.. Dover estimates that % per cent
of the income tax returns of the country
can be audited and handled at reglona
headquarters without even being sent To
Washington. \ test Is to be made on
the Pacific coast. Mr.. Dover halls from
that section and knows the viewpoint OF
the taxpayers of that region, many OF
whom have had to pay expenses to and
from Washington several times to tran.
Sact business which the government
could lust as well handle by branch
office on the coast.
Because it will take time to find out
how a branch of the revenue bureau
shall be equipped and what the problems
of administration will be it has beer
thought best to use the Pacific coast as an
experiment. and when the system Is per
fected the same plan will be applied to
the whole country so that before Marcel
next year the income tax returns will be
audited and settled without reference tC
Washington in nine-tenths of the cases
Mr.. Dover said he would let the Pa
cific coast bureau handle all claims for
refunds or tax controversies involving
So. 900 or less. This. he said included at
least % per cent of the returns. As for
those in excess of that sum. the nationa
bureau at Washington would continue t
handle them, except that by relieving the
Washington Office of most of the returns
persons with claims above $4,000 will
get much more rapid action and will bc
saved time and money.
| Trained Men in Charge.
1t will be the policy of the treasury
department to establish corps of
| trained men from the national capital in
| the offices of the four collection districts
/ namely, at Tacoma. Portland, San Fran
! cisco and Los Angeles. All these districts
/ will be under the direction not of the
/ local collectors of internal revenue. but
under what is known as revenue agent
/ in charge This officer already is pro
vided for in the income tax administra
| ton. He ScrutinizeS returns and acts
more or less as a check on the work of
! the collectors If he is in doubt, he viii
refer the return to the main Office of the
| internal revenue in the national capital
| There are 81 collection districts in the
/ United States and it is not known yet
how many regional bureaus of internal
revenue will be needed to make the sys
| tenn effective. The experience on the Pa
| cific coast will teach the treasury depart
! ment how many branch offices will be
! necessary. There are other advantages
! of decent realization besides convenience
| to the taxpayers. 1t is felt that the gov
eminent will be able to maintain its per-
sonnet better in branch Offices than in
Washington. where the constant changes
and shifting have impeded the work As
| sistant Secretary Dover has made up his
mind that his job in the scheme of things
here is to simplify the income tax audit
| ing. He will go to the Pacific coast soon
| to supervise in person the regional opera
| tions of the internal revenue bureau.