FOUR - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, May 3, 2017 Local couple’s WWII collection part of Doolittle Raiders Gala Chuck and Lisa Nelson with their collection of World War II memorabilia at the Doolittle Raiders Gala Saturday in Pendleton. -Photo by David Sykes Chuck and Lisa Nelson took their large collection of World War II memorabil- ia to the Doolittle Raiders Gala, held Saturday at the Pendleton Airport. Chuck has been building his large collection for many years now, and said Saturday those items on display were only part of what he has accumulated. The display showed uniforms, knives, equipment and other au- thentic items from World War II and was there for inspection by the public. The Doolittle Raiders Gala was an all-day event and included a classic car show, historical re-enact- ments, screenings of the documentary “WWII in a Wild West Town,” and a B-25 bomber flown up from Madras for the event. The B-25 is an original of the kind of plane flown by Doolittle and his men on their raid on Japan during World War II. In the evening was the banquet, show and auction with old-fashioned USO show and interactive enter- tainment. Former Heppner resident Chris Sykes and his fiancé Rachel Parm also helped with the event by putting together the auction. News from Hardman Community Center Hardman Community Center reports that the new heater in the Annex finally came off of back order and is installed. The MCGG team of John Ripple, Doug Holland, Mike Correa and Matt Baker donated the in- stallation and their advice, and diligently checked on the back order. HCC mem- bers involved were Sam Martin Sr., Jim Kirkpatrick, Don Ward, and Scott and Claudia Smythe. And, of course, the Ford Family Foundation was responsible for the grant to replace the heater. Sam Martin will be installing safety barriers in the near future. Claudia Smythe touched up the floor paint that was scratched from dragging the portable pro- pane canisters across it, and members installed switch plates and are in the pro- cess of covering the hole where the thermostat for- merly went. Glass is there to replace a window that broke, also. The ceiling trim on the east wall will have to be stacked like the north wall, due to the gap. The windows cannot be trimmed until they are, at a bare minimum, reset—the community center boasts gaps/unevenness with the wall and gaps of up to a half inch between upper and lower panes, large enough that members say you can squeeze a dish towel be- tween them. The center also has re- ceived many pictures from Mark and Tami Rietmann and Gerald and Dianna Hoeft for their collection, and a donation of books from Crossbar H. Bob and Darlene Hoskins and Craig and Anne Munkers have or- dered the fencing they are donating for around the old Hardman Cemetery where Bob Hoskins’s ancestors are buried. John Flynn will tear out the old fence and Dan Van Schoiack will install the new fence. Randy Hansen was un- able to tune our piano due to a broken bass bridge. It was noted in the interior of the piano when he opened it by the previous tuner— named RW Saunders—and dated 1961. Hansen also discovered that since then, the treble bridge has split. He cleaned up the piano and looked up its history; the serial number was issued in 1925, though one key was dated 1909! HCC mem- bers say they appreciate Mike and Darcy Bergstrom, whose donation allowed them to explore this, and are saddened that it’s in such bad shape. “We will enjoy it as best we can, for as long as we can, in the current condition,” said secretary Claudia Smythe. On March 13, Jim Kirk- patrick, Don Ward and Scott Smythe performed “explor- atory surgery” on the facade of the Hall, which had been boarded up and the doors changed out. The engineers in the group found that the real cause of the window breakage was structural— the framing holding the NOW HIRING DRIVERS windows was inadequate for the amount of glass, and the constant wind in Hard- man exacerbated the issue, coupled with the natural settling of the building over time. The upper windows, which were somewhat pro- tected by a porch, off and on, over the years are still intact, but bowed. Petty- john’s has given HCC most of the estimates and the State Restorationist has added her input. The cen- ter has commitments from local contractors to donate their time to complete the work and volunteer labor as well. They also received donations from Bob and Bonnie Buschke and Mid- way Ranches to help with matching funds. Once all the numbers and informa- tion are in, they say they will decide how to proceed to “stop the snow from pil- ing up inside the Hall doors and the how to keep the curtains from billowing!” After much research and measuring, it is be- lieved they can make the men’s bathroom handicap- accessible without chang- ing the footprint. The build- ing committee will have to meet to go over the possible plan, mainly to decide on how and what kind of door should be installed. Sherron Woodside and Dick Paris provided additional input on this. Scott Smythe has been caulking and adding screws to the Annex roof in hopes of stopping the leak(s)—to no avail—until a plan can be implemented for a more permanent fix. The trusses are bowed from the Annex settling due to the former moisture problems. When it was jacked up and tied off, much of the tin loosened and, with the bowing, it’s not refastening very well. As far as the other scheduled 2017 projects, Claudia Smythe is ready to go on painting the women’s bath hall and staining the dark around the edge of the dance hall floor, and a crew is in place for work- ing on the upstairs cleaning and wallpaper removal. Test plots are planned for determining a floor fin- ish. The donated tiles have been taken out of stor- age and counted and with some “very non-profes- sional fudging,” there will be exactly enough for the two bathroom stall floors. A couple of volunteers have stepped forward to possibly take on this project. The next event sched- uled for the Hall is the Harshman Reunion on May 28. Tax Wise & Otherwise A periodic column by Daniel Van Schoiack, CPA The Right to Remain Silent Previous articles in this column discussed the execu- tive order of President Trump to relieve taxpayers who would be penalized by the “Individual Mandate” of the Affordable Health Care Act. The Individual Mandate penalty was at the heart of argument to repeal the Affordable Care Act before the Supreme Court in June of 2012. The argument was made that Congress did not have the authority to impose the penalty. Chief Justice Roberts shot that argument down as he construed the “penalty” was in fact a “tax” imposed on those who do not have health insurance and that Congress had the authority to impose the tax. Prior to the executive order, taxpayers were required to indicate on their federal tax returns whether or not they had health care coverage. Taxpayers who did not have health care coverage faced a penalty of up to $695 per adult and $347.50 per child, to a maximum of $2,085 per household for the tax year 2016. In response to the executive order, the IRS announced they would accept tax returns which were “silent” in regard to health care coverage and issue refunds under those circumstances. However, despite an executive order and an IRS directive, many tax preparers are forcing their clients to comply with the Individual Mandate and pay the penalty for lack of health care coverage. Recently, on an internet forum for professional tax preparers, I debated this issue with several participants, including “Jack from Ohio,” who was concerned he would get “dinged” by the IRS for preparing an inaccurate tax return. His argument was fruitless. The IRS clearly stated they will accept and process tax returns regardless of whether the box is checked indicating health care cover- age. While it is true the IRS might eventually send the taxpayer a letter inquiring about health care coverage, the IRS cannot assess penalties for failure to check a box the taxpayer was not required to check. Also, under Code Section 5000A(g)(2) and Reg. § 15000A-5(b), a taxpayer is not subject to any criminal prosecution or penalty for failure to pay the individual mandate penalty. Unlike other taxes, the IRS cannot file liens or levies to collect the health care coverage penalty. In fact, the only way the IRS can collect the penalty is by withholding a future tax refund. It appears many tax preparers have not informed their clients about the executive order or the response by the IRS. For example, a couple I am acquainted with recently told me they ended up paying several thousand dollars in taxes, including $1,700 for the individual man- date penalty. They were surprised to find out they were not required to indicate if they had coverage or pay the penalty with the return. While the law requiring health care coverage is still in effect, the executive order and the IRS directive do not require taxpayers to pay the penalty with their tax return; or require professional tax preparers to enforce payment of the penalty. Clearly, tax payers have the “right to remain silent” in this matter. Please feel free to contact me if you have any ques- tions about this article. Daniel Van Schoiack CPA, can be contacted at 541- 676-9971 or danielrvan@yahoo.com. Recent articles can viewed at danielcpapro.com. BOARDMAN SHOOTING -Continued from PAGE ONE era Jimenez, 26, of Pendle- in Morrow County. MCSO deputies and detectives found that the victim, Rob- ert Miguel Aguilera, 33, of Boardman had received two non-life threatening gunshots wounds. He had reportedly been shot while at a residence on Frontage Road in Morrow County Morrow County District Attorney Justin Nelson has earlier that day in an alter- released the following report: cation with another man. -Kevin Ray Dieter, 35, was convicted of Failure to Investigation identified Report as a Sex Offender, a Class A Violation. Fines, fees the suspect as Cesar Corcu- and assessments totaled $1,100. DA’s Report BPA PLANNED POWER OUTAGE FOR THE IONE AREA 11:00 PM FRIDAY, MAY 5TH - 5:00 AM SATURDAY MAY 6TH. For servicing and testing equipment and performing routine maintenance The outage areas include: Town of Ione, Ella Rd., Lower Rhea Creek, Brenner Canyon, Ione Gooseberry Rd., Dry Fork, Lower Willow Creek, North Lex and the surrounding areas. The communities of Heppner and Lexington will not be affected by this outage. Columbia Basin Electric would like to apologize for any inconvenience this outage may cause. If a member is unsure whether or not they will be affected by this outage, please call Columbia Basin Electric at 541-676-9146. ton. After fleeing Morrow County Jimenez was later involved in two additional incidents in Hermiston and Umatilla where shots were fired. Monday shortly before 1 p.m., officers from the Hermiston PD located and detained Jimenez in Herm- iston. The firearm used in the shootings, a .22 caliber rifle according to the Mor- row County District Attor- ney’s office, was found in Jimenez’s possession. After interviews by Morrow County detec- tives, Jimenez was lodged at Umatilla County Jail and arraigned Tuesday on charges of Attempted Mur- der, Assault II, Felon in Possession of a Firearm, Unlawful Use of a Weapon, Menacing and Pointing a Firearm at Another. His next court appearance is a preliminary hearing sched- uled for May 9. Bail was set at $350,000. SWCD to offer free pine, fir seedlings Morrow SWCD will be giving away Ponderosa pine and a limited amount of Douglas fir seedlings this Friday, May 5, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Please bring containers to the SWCD office in the Ag Service Center at 430 W Linden Way in Heppner.