While it would be great if we could have conversations with the DoD or Pentagon directly, for many war tax resisters our primary government contact is with the IRS. Beginning with the choice of whether or not to file an income tax return for Tax Day, our choice of resistance tactics can affect the type of attention we get from the IRS. Living on a low income may greatly reduce the possibility of IRS contact, for example. For those who do resist filing and/or payment of taxes, however, some resisters don’t hear at all from the IRS for years and years, while others are frequently contacted and collected on (and most find themselves somewhere inbetween these extremes)
(“April 15” artwork by Doug Minkler)
Those of us lucky (or “lucky,” if you prefer) enough to get IRS attention for our resistance then have to decide how to deal with this attention. Do we send letters with our returns or respond to their letters? Do we return phone calls? Do we meet with agents? If so, what do we say?
When it comes to the possibility of levying bank accounts, garnishing wages, etc.: Do we try to be “uncollectable” by keeping any money or property we have out of sight or out of our names? Do we view collection as inevitable and refuse to try to obscure our accounts?
There’s no right answer to these questions. Each war tax resister gets to decide what their best course of action is. NWTRCC has counselors available to discuss options with you and help you clarify your goals and reasoning. We also have a great deal of resources in our Practical War Tax Resistance series, newsletters, and all over our website.
