Bloody Taxes

"Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing." (granfury) 09/29/2015 at 01:23 • Filed to: None

0

3

I have no problem paying what I owe, but I’ve got a little problem dating back a few years that I thought was resolved but is now escalating. Here in the city of St Louis you have to pay an extra tax if you either live or work in the city. My former employer was based outside of the city, but my home is just south of downtown, in the city. The taxes were taken out of my checks and was reported on my tax return.

Here’s where it gets a little confusing. I started work in August 2012 but I worked from my home in California until I moved to my new home in St Louis on 29 September 2012. During that period I neither worked nor lived in the city of St Louis, and as such I didn’t expect to pay the extra tax on the income earned during that period, but apparently the city feels differently. They are asking for less than $200 with interest and fees.

I sent them a letter a couple of years ago disputing this, and not hearing back from them I thought it was resolved but this is apparently not the case. Now they say that there’s a warrant for my arrest. I’m completely broke, unemployed and the last thing I need a prospective employer to see during a background check is a warrant. I’m just wondering what my next step should be. Do I send another letter (with supporting documentation), this time by certified mail? Do I contact my alderman? I have been downtown several times in the last week, but I don’t think I should go to city hall for fear of being incarcerated.

What do I do now???

orcim > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 09/29/2015 at 02:39

1

Whoa. This is one of those “OMG what do I do now” things. Because I’ve been in the tax meat grinder, and I’ve been in the right, and the meat grinder and the right don’t mix, because policy, *unless* you can find someone to listen.

Just for fun, call the tax dept. (If you’re paranoid, use a different phone than your own.) The main thing is that you aren’t afraid to engage. Silence is acquiescence under the law. Don’t be silent.

Ask to speak to someone that “can help you.” ID yourself (because you have to so they can look up records), explain the situation, and find out how they look at it. It may be that they *can’t* be reasonable based on policy (whether right or wrong.) It’s important to know that and then you have a choice to make - pay (however you can) or continue to fight (city halls, warrants, etc.) That latter isn’t pretty.

It may be that you find someone that can listen and will work with you to resolve the issue.

I dunno how to say this without sounding new age or something, but if you call and inside yourself you aren’t looking for a fight, aren’t looking to be “right”, aren’t playing an authority game - and maybe only looking to resolve the problem, that’ll come through on the phone and you (in my experience) increase the odds of finding a solution that’s good for everyone. However, as with with VW TDI machines, YMMV.

samssun > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 09/29/2015 at 03:25

1

Escape to the suburbs and free yourself of the extortion. St. Louis County cops wouldn’t serve that warrant in a million years (especially the ex-city cops).

smobgirl > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 09/29/2015 at 09:34

0

I can guarantee you that if you have someone write the same letter on your behalf, but that person can sign as a CPA, the whole problem will disappear. I had a similar problem where I was audited by Virginia because I used my parents address on my returns while I was working in Florida (and living in hotels for work, so no consistent address). They tried to make me pay a small fortune a few years later and refused to listen to reason.

I don't know how much that would cost from a CPA (my uncle helped me) but there's usually some sort of legal aid clinic for low income folks that might help you.