Letter, March 2, 1975

Dear Mom, Dad & all,

Got your letter two days after sending mine asking you to send my W-2 forms. Since you have the records of what dad paid me & that will be the only difficult part of the return to fill out, I am going to send you the information I have and let your tax man do the return. Since I have copies of the Wis. Form & the federal 1040 and 1040-A forms, I will send you a signed copy of each which may save time if the tax man doesn’t object to the idea of my having signed an uncompleted form. The “Federal Income Tax Guide for Peace Corps Volunteers” (which I am enclosing), explains what part of my Peace Corps income is taxable. I am enclosing the W-2 form for my “Readjustment allowance” and the statements given me for other income. The statement from the training administrator confuses the issue somewhat because he states my total income instead of the taxable part. I have computed the taxable part as the “Guide” says one should. I recommend that you send the PC tax guide with my federal form, but not the training administrator’s statement, but the tax man will know best I expect.

I figure I made no more than $400 from UW last spring and bank interest, and with $400 from dad that makes $800 plus the $576 from P.C. means my total income is less than $1,376 so if I take the $1300 low income allowance and the standard deduction there is no way I will have to pay tax.

For Wis. Taxes my P.C. income doesn’t count so I only have a maximum of $800 and I can take 800/1376 = 2/3 to 3/4 of the low income allowance there so my taxable income will be next to nothing, & I still get to subtract $20 of tax for the personal deduction. Hope this isn’t all confusing you, but what it all amounts to is that I only have to file to get a refund from my U.W. withholdings and to get my low income on record if I want to average it some other year.

Just struck me that I can’t sign the return beforehand because I’d have to put the date and when the tax man signed it his date would be much later & we’d be all screwed up. In that case it makes no sense to send you the forms since you also have copies. So I’ll just send along the PCV guide, W-2, & statements of other income & have you send me the forms back to sign.

Am keeping pretty busy these days with trying to set up a survey of the small land owners in one section of the irrigation project. I also have purchased a guitar & am trying to make some semblance of music on it! Haven’t taken any pictures just lately, but plan to go to a beach on the far side of the country over Easter (we get from 4 days to a week, not sure which yet) & so should get some worthwhile pictures then. I was real sorry to hear of dad’s trouble, but am happy he finally got the operation & hope he is coming along well. It must be rough with Dad laid up & Donna, Bruce & Mom all listed as walking wounded!

Sure hope you can figure out the tax O.K., guess it’s the biggest worry on my mind right now (except Dad’s health).

Dean