---— —v i i iui jvjoijr, r\yj\ m i j, £.UU*t - J
IRS deadline looms over unprepared tax filers
Taxes or filing extensions
must be postmarked today
By Sheldon Traver
Freelance Reporter
In the 18th century, Benjamin
Franklin uttered these now-famous
words: "Nothing is certain in life ex
cept death and taxes."
Tax day has arrived, and with it
comes stress, angst and anxiety for
many students and faculty members.
For those receiving refunds, today is
nothing to worry about; however,
many citizens are opening their wal
lets and wnting checks payable to Un
cle Sam before midnight.
According to the Internal Revenue
Service's official Web site,
http://www.irs.gov, one in five Ameri
cans waits until the last week to file their
taxes, and most of these people will
owe taxes to the government. An esti
mated 8.2 million citizens are expected
to file an extension on their taxes.
But the IRS has this warning: "This
is an extension to file a return, not an
extension to pay your taxes." Filers
must still pay what they estimate their
taxes to be. The IRS has even made it
easier to pay by accepting credit cards.
"Usually I'm filing in the last week,"
Eugenean Fred Schaad said. "I'm a per
son who just doesn't think of it.... I
don't have a calendar in my brain."
Rose Woods, a Eugene baker, wait
ed in line at an AARP tax help site to
get help on her taxes. She said pro
crastination is her biggest foe when it
comes to preparing taxes.
"I just figure I'll have plenty of time,
then it's like 'Oh no,'" Woods said
about her experiences during the past
few years.
Many other people also stood in
line at the downtown Atrium Build
ing during their lunch breaks or after
work, waiting for free tax help from
the AARP.
"We usually file 5,500 federal re
turns in Eugene and Springfield every
year," said Gwen Williams, the dis
trict tax coordinator for the AARP. Vol
unteers help people who may be
chronic procrastinators or who are
simply unable get their taxes done
elsewhere. They also try to maximize
every filer's return.
"We try to let them know what to
keep," Williams said. "Keep track of all
donations, including Girl Scout cook
ies, because 50 percent of the cost is
considered a charitable donation."
Most students said they already
filed their taxes.
BUSH
continued from page 1
University College Republicans
member Anthony Warren said he ex
pects Bush to gain popularity in Ore
gon because of his Healthy Forest Ini
tiatives, which Warren said are
environmentally friendly.
"I think that Bush has a good
chance of winning Oregon," he said,
adding that he does not put much
faith in polls and that it is far too early
to determine Oregon's favorite. •1
The survey also found that 1 per
cent of Oregonians supported inde
pendent candidate Ralph Nader and
6 percent were undecided. Bloom
compared the recent survey to a
March 4 poll conducted by The Ore
gonian, which had Kerry leading Bush
45 percent to 40 percent.
The survey shows Kerry leading in
the Portland area, 53 percent to 40
percent, with Bush leading through
out the rest of Oregon, 51 percent to
39 percent.
Kerry also leads among independ
ents and political moderates, while
Bush leads Republicans and conserva
tives. Bush also leads with voters be
tween 18 and 44, while Kerry leads
with voters over 45. College-educated
voters also prefer Kerry, according to
the survey.
The survey points out that a num
ber of national polls show Kerry
leading Bush, but that Bush leads in
"battleground" states such as Ore
gon. Bloom noted that Kerry is not
well known throughout Oregon,
which allows Bush to more easily af
fect perceptions of the Democratic
candidate. He said Bush's negative ad
campaigns portraying Kerry as favor
ing tax increases are causing Kerry's
ratings to drop.
"Those Bush ads seem to be tai
lor-made for Oregon's increasingly
anti-tax environment," he said in
the survey.
University College Democrats co
Chairman Kevin Curtin agreed that
the state is a "battleground" for the
two parties, although he sees Kerry
pulling ahead considering Gore did
so in the last election.
"(Oregon's) going to be very im
portant to the election," he said.
Bloom said it is important to note
the survey's time frame and that it's too
early in the game to truly predict the
outcome of Oregon's majority vote.
"At this point it really could go ei
ther way, "he said.
Contact the higher education/
student life/student affairs reporter
at chelseaduncan@dailyemerald.com.
W*fiUO
DISCOVER THE MOST
COMFORTABLE WAY TO f
Call now and find prices starting as
low as $499 on select units!
• Free cable
• Washer/Dryer
• Exercise classes available
• 1 & 2 bedrooms
• Valley River location
Kiuesi ^leWiace r
344-3536
Managed by Willamette Mgmt Group, LLC
"I did it early to avoid the hassle and
to have less of a chance for errors," un
declared sophomore Chloe Stallworth
said. She added that her parents assist
her with tax preparation.
Students and community members
found free help with their taxes this
year when accounting students from
the Lundquist School of Business vol
unteered to prepare taxes.
"About 175 students and Eugene
residents came to our Saturday ses
sions, " senior accounting major Jere
my Allen said about this year's work
shops, run by the Beta Alpha Psi
honors fraternity.
Lois Douglass, an office specialist
in the Office of Student Financial Aid,
said it is just a myth that students re
ceive more financial aid if they file
their taxes early.
"We will not penalize you for filing
your taxes late," Douglass said. "We
simply encourage people to turn in
the FAFSA prior to March 1 to get pri
ority status, even if you are just esti
mating your taxes when completing
the form."
April 15 is not all work for those
who wait until the last minute to file
their taxes, however.
"I get together with some other
friends and wait until 11:45 p.m. to
www.dailyemerald.com
your place for
news -«*_...
-^ classifieds
reader polls-**—
—-^ archives
and more-**-—_
drive to the post office for the post
mark, " Portlander Quinn Richmond
said. "We have a barbecue and just
make a party out of it."
Pioneer Courthouse Square in Port
land is home to the "Dancing Gener
al" every April 15. The General, who
protests military spending, will dance
and shout "Yeah" and "Yahoo" when
ever someone drops their taxes off in
the mailbox at the square.
Phe U.S. Post Office is also prepar
ing for the last-minute flood of filers.
"We will have people collecting
mail from cars until midnight," said
Aric Skjelstad, assistant plant manager
at the Springfield U.S. Post Office on
Gateway Street.
:J:.'I;':"-1 U; 11.1I I . ..I. in
The Springfield Police Department
will assist the post office by directing
traffic and providing signs to help last
minute filers get through the lines,
which begin early in the evening.
Starting at about 6 p.m. it stays
steady until midnight," Skjelstad said.
The post office in downtown Eu
gene will also be open until 7 p.m. to
take returns.
"I'm proud to be paying taxes in the
United States," said Arthur Godfrey, a
1950s comedian, said. "The only
thing is — 1 could be just as proud for
half the money."
Sheldon Traver is a freelance reporter
for the Emerald.
SOCIETY
Fancy-schmancy
COCKTAILS & SUPER
SEXY BARTENDERS!
One block from
UofO campus
Lounge
OPENS @ 5PM
1769 Franklin Blvd.
541.342.4872
Abandon all willpower,
YE WHO ENTER
the Siam Society.
Banff Mountain Film Festival
BANFF
mountain film festival
www.banffmountainfestivais.ca
2003/3! 004