MANY `NON-FILING' MISSOURIANS TO GET REFUNDS FROM IRS

The Internal Revenue Service has revealed a surprising statistic about non-filing Missourians.

"More than half of them are entitled to refunds," said Nova Felton of the IRS office at St. Louis.

The IRS started a non-filer program in late September 1992. What it amounts to, said Felton, is that if a taxpayer voluntarily files delinquent returns without prior contact by the IRS, criminal tax charges are not pursued.

A total of 5,300 people have responded to the program in Missouri.

"As of Oct. 9, 1993, we have secured 2,800 returns," said Felton. "Fifty-one percent of those returns were for refunds."

Paul Kipper of the local IRS office said taxpayers should not fear coming in. He explained, however, that this is not an amnesty program.

"Taxpayers will be asked to pay the original tax plus any penalties and interest that apply," he said. "We're not interested in sending people to jail. We'll work with them and get them back in the system. We'll work out some sort of tax payment plan."

Non-filers make up about 8 or 9 percent of taxpayers.

"More than 115 million people filed returns nationally last year," said Felton. "The percentage of non-filers is small, but it is a growing problem. We want to see the list dwindle.

Since the IRS initiated its nationwide program last year to address the problem of non-compliance by individual taxpayers who have stopped filing or never filed a return, an increase of $773 million nationally has been collected.

A lot of that increase is due to previous non-filers stepping forward," said Felton.

Although 2,800 returns have been acquired in Missouri, there are still 25,000 to 30,000 people in the state who are non-filers, said Felton.

If non-filing Americans paid their tax bill, they could wipe out a portion of the U.S. budget deficit, said Felton. Taxpayers who have dropped out of the tax-filing system owe more than $80 billion.

Felton said the IRS was pulling more than 100 agents off their regular jobs of auditing returns to help in the crackdown in Missouri. More than 2,000 agents are working on the program nationally.

IRS officials say the shift of 10 percent of the agency's 19,000 auditors and revenue agents will pay off in the long run because when non-filers are caught part of the bargain is that they agree to stay in the system.

"The estimate from Washington is that non-filers are cheating the government out of at least $7 billion a year," said Felton

Statistics also reveal that there are a lot of reasons why people don't file. Sixty-four percent of non-filers are self-employed individuals who deal primarily in cash. They have been out of the system on the average of four years."

Other reasons for non-filing involved serious personal problems, divorce, death in the family, business failure, and unemployment.

A lot of people who fail to file one year are "afraid to come back," said Felton. "They fear jail or financial ruin as back taxes mount in penalties and interest."

The IRS said that if all else fails it will turn to its ultimate weapon: criminal prosecution.

For additional information or assistance, call IRS taxpayer service at 1-800-829-1040.