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BUMMER - IOWA BIRTH DOESN'T CONFER TAX EXEMPTION

February 25, 2004

In a ruling that is sure to disappoint Iowans everywhere, a Federal court in California has ruled that Iowa birth doesn't exempt an individual from Federal income taxes.

Neil Alan Scott, a transplanted Iowan living in California, skipped filing returns for a number of years, starting in 1985. He filed returns for 1989 and 1992; on those returns, he eschewed the conventional "single" or "married" filing status and instead filed "Natural born free Citizen/National of Iowa." As the tax return instructions had no rate table for that filing status, he logically assumed that he didn't have any tax due, so he helpfully wrote in "N/A" on all of the lines on his returns.

Even so, the court ruled in favor of the IRS, enabling them to collect the taxes. It does inspire wonder, thought - what is an "Un-natural" born citizen?

If you are interested in detailed reasoning why lame arguments like Mr. Scott's never work, go here.

No link to the Scott decision is available. A Google search of his name does uncover a letter to the editor to the North County Times of California by "Dr. Neil Alan Scott" (scroll down on this link for full letter). One passage convinces us that the letter writer is the same fellow who lost the court case:

"Congress, only, has power to legislate for non-volunteering unprivileged American national private citizens in the 50 states concerning interstate commerce and postal roads. Also, federal government treaties are restricted, such as the U.N. and NAFTA etc., believe it or not, affirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1957's Reid vs. Covert 365 US 1 at 17. But none are so hopelessly enslaved as those who falsely believe they are free,… per von Goethe."

If only he'd have unleashed that devastating argument against the IRS! Oh, wait, he probably did...

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