• First Contact - Friday, October 3, 2008
• Power of Attorney (POA) Received - Tuesday, October 7, 2007, 9:00 a.m.
• POA Faxed to IRS - Tuesday, October 7, 2007, 9:15 a.m.
• First IRS Contact - Tuesday, October 7, 2007, 9:15 a.m.
• Tax returns previously filed by taxpayer - None
• Tax returns not filed - 2001 through 2007
• Tax returns filed by IRS - 2001, 2002, and 2003
• I prepared and filed 2001 through 2007
• Wage Levy Release received October 8, 2008
• No monthly payments are required since taxpayer owes nothing

Harold was like a lot of my callers.............

He had not filed tax returns for over seven years (nothing this century).

However, IRS had done him a favor and filed 2001, 2002, and 2003 for him and was trying to collect over $13,000 they said was due.

So, naturally, the IRS computer system tracked him down and automatically mailed a Wage Levy to his employer.

There was nothing wrong with this series of events since this is way the IRS system is set up. You don't file, then we will file for you based on your W-2s and 1099s. If you owe us, then our computer system will track you down and pull your chain and rattle your cage and get your immediate attention, usually in the form of a wage garnishment.

After Harold was informed by his employer of this little IRS love note, he searched the Internet and called me. So I gave him the standard IRS Wage Levy Isn't The End of Civilization As You Know It speech followed by the standard Here's What I Can Do To Help You speech.

In a couple of days, all returned to normal. Well, actually, all became better than normal because my tax returns showed that Harold would actually owe nothing to IRS and would get a wee little bit of money back from them. Fact is, he wouldn't even owe them the $13,000 they had computed for him.

One of my IRS reps accepted my fax-filed tax returns and then he faxed a levy release to me and to Harold's payroll department and Harold got his full paycheck.

Who says there's an Economic Crisis in October 2008? Well, at least Demublicans and the Repocrats won't get any of Harold's current paychecks.