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PAGE 3-PLAINDEALER-FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 1984. v Dick Peterson Form 1040 favored to win filing game I have been waiting for this year for I don't know how long. It's the year I finally fill out the fabled Form 1040 Department of Treasury-Internal Revenue Service U.S. Individual Tax Return with Schedule A, Schedule W, Form 5695 and Form 2106 attached. I'U.even send along a couple of Form W-2 Wage and Tax Statements. It's all very confusing and lengthy, hence the name long form. It requires exacting addition, subtraction and multiplication. And its various instructions seem to be open to a wide range of interpretation. The stakes are heightened by the possibility of being tossed into gentleman's prison for imprecise mathematics or foolhardy interpretation. The odds of that happening are slim, but I like to make them disproportionate to thicken my tax plot. That helps me be realistic when I enter the un­ charted waters of "Miscellaneous Deductions" on Schedule A. I have been computing my taxes on Form 1040A, the pink one which is cut and dried as far as filling out. You would be pressed to make a mistake on 1040A that would lead to an audit. There's little room for imagination. Tax computation has been simplified more with 1040EZ, whose name is indicative of its difficulty. IRS calls it "a very short form." Wendy's would call it a "very fluffy bun." It only has 11 lines, little boxes to put digits in, and it even shows what the numbers should look like in the boxes. The camera industry would call it Sure Shot. Form 1040A has not presented a challenge in a long time, and I have no fear of having a mistake come back to haunt me. The only way to get away from the pink form and renew tax trepedation was to buy a house and start taking ad­ vantage of the big interest deductions. Admittedly, it's an expensive way to play Form 1040. I'll be honest. I was expecting to do quite a bit better at the game than I apparently have done. The object to tax filing, at least from the perspective of a taxpayer, is to make Line 66 as large as possible. That line contains your refund. I had planned on four figures. I got a lousy three. I was naive. I misunderstood some of the basic rules of the game. When I was calculating my potential deductions, I was comparing that figure to the figures on Rorm W-2 to arrive at an estimated refund. C It was making me feel guilty. For a while-until I filled out my return over the weekend--I was thinking the government was not going to get any money from me, not even from withholdings. Then I started wondering how government could operate within that system, and I began to feel personally responsible for the $200 billion deficit. I mean, if I don't pay in anything, how could the government expect to make ^ythki&affraf.anyojie? , r 1 Ihavenoth fng sigtakit u4esWVJbAg^>endiigilibtral would be a hypocrite if he opposed taxation. When I thought the government would owe me several thousand and it would get zip in return, I even considered writing a check to the Bureau of Public Debt, which the IRS commissioner en­ courages taxpayers to do. Then I hit the big nut. Deductions are not compared to wage withholdings. Deductions are inserted on the line after adjusted gross income and subtracted from it. Deductions lower your taxable income, which means $1,000 in deduc­ tions does not equal $1,000 in your pocket. Far from it. That's a disappointing realization. I learned another thing about deductions. If you file a joint return, you automatically take $3,400 off the top of your deductions before calculating them into your adjusted gross income. The instruction manual tried to explain that away by saying the full benefit of your itemized deductions will not be affected because "the zero bracket" you enter is built into the tax table. Huh? Are those home rules? To substantially increase my refund, I will have to come up with some major-league deductions-but we only bought one house last year. Suddenly, the filing game has become much more dif­ ficult to win. The IRS is playing hardball, and it isn't about to spot you any points before you play. BUNNY WESTERN UNION Extend office hours to assist late taxpayers general News The Illinois Department of Revenue will be extending hours-including opening on Saturday-to assist last-minute filers in completing their state income tax returns before the midnight Monday, (April 16) deadline. T a x p a y e r s e r v i c e representatives will be standing by in both Springfield and Chicago from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday (April 14) to answer taxpayer telephone inquiries. Downstate residents will be able to find ready answers to tax questions by calling 217-782-3336 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday (April 12), Friday (April 13) and Monday (April 16) or by visiting the Tax Processing Center at 1901S. Ninth Street, Springfield. Chicago area residents can call 312-641-2150 from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Monday. Walk-in assistance also will be available in the north lobby of the State of Illinois Building, 160 N. LaSalle, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. each week day and until 6 p.m. Monday, the filing deadline. <r Taxpayers with questions also may contact any one of several Revenue field offices located across the state. Field offices are open from8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. each week day in Rockford, Wauconda, Peoria, Rock Island, West Chicago, Champaign, Fairview Heights, Marion, Evergreen Park, Des Plaines and Broadview. Addresses and telephone numbers of field offices are listed on the inside cover of the individual income tax booklet (IL-1040), as well a6 in local telephone directories. <? Last year, nearly 4.7 million state income tax returns were filed-nearly two million during the final week before the filing deadline. £ LAUNCH continued from page 1 body CT Scanner. With these additions and with other programs that are being planned, we decided a Phase II of our fund drive was needed." When Phase II of the Capital Fund drive is completed in May of this year, Laudick is confident that this goal will be attained. "Since joining the staff of Northern Illinois Medical Center, I have been extremely imoressed with the residents in the service area of the Medical p Center. "Their hard work and dedication have exemplified the word caring. To the hundreds of people who have donated un­ countable hours to this project, we extend our sincere gratitude. Their efforts will help insure quality health care for years to come. With this continued support, surpassing our goal is indeed attainat Patrols increased near sch nahle." ools The Plaindealer received a few phone calls recently from parents concerned about a report of someone trying to pick­ up school age children in the McHenry Shores area. McHenry Police said the rumor stemmed from an in­ cident where a woman saw a car stop at a bus stop, with a door open. The car left as the parent approached. Police said no description of the person or the car was given and they have been unable to identify the children who were at the bus stop. As a precaution, patrols have increased in the area during school hours. APRIL 2, 1984 HELLO...I'M THE EASTER BUNNY. And as you can imagine, I'm very busy this time of year. Never too busy to visit with my friends at the McHENRY COUNTY CLUB though. Especially this Easter Sunday, April 22. McHENRY COUNTRY CLUB is having a fabulous EASTER BRUNCH from 10:30 am to 1:30 pm and an equally fabulous EASTER DINNER BUFFET from 2:30 pm to 5:00 pm. They're having all kinds of neat stuff like Prime Rib, Seafood Newburg, Italian Lasagna, Eggs Benedict, Roast Leg of Lamb au Naturel just to name a few items. The incredible edible salad bar and dessert table will also be ready for you and your family to enjoy. After all, Easter is traditionally a day for good friends and families to enjoy a real feast. So call Bunnies, little helper, Dorothy, at (815) 385-1072 for reservations today. Easter Sunday will be by reservation ONLY. I'll be there handing out Easter Eggs to all the kids, so join me at McHENRY COUNTRY CLUB. <Sr. Uk&tt i. JU 1 S20 N. JOHN ST. • McHENRY • 385-1072 M c H E N R Y M A K K F T P I A C E 3 8 5 4 1 0 0 This Week... Scoop Up Finds for Easter, You'll Love the Savings! S a l e e n d s S a t u r d a y , A p r i l 2 1 s t ! V:/ Special Purchase! Misses' Blouses 6" $10.50-$13.50 Values Wrap up Easter excitement for less than you'd expect This is the year of the beautiful blouse! Pick the prettiest styles and colors in free-spirited po!y/cotton & k Organize! Roomy Vinyl Handbags 847 Reg. $11-$12 To carry all the things you need -- big, beautiful, soft vinyl bags with multi-com­ partments! Large assort ment in white, black, navy taupe, brown, grey, ivory h Jacket Dresses in Half-Sizes, Hurry! § 16 -2617 Reg. $21 99-$35 Welcome Easter in the newest looks for spring! 2-piece jacket dresses of carefree polyester in crisp combinations of navy and white, tender blues and lilacs, water color pastels and more Capture a collection for your wardrobe in sizes 14V?-241/2 Rush in' I Jolene Leather Sandals --- on Sale OPEN SUNDAYS 10 TO 5 DAILY 9 T09, SAT. 9 TO 6 Reg $19 99 Stride into spring in cool comfort and smart fashion at big savings! See these and other sandals here in grey, camel, more; 5-10 Use our Free Layaway or Choose and Charge today