In Brief:

Timely mailing of your tax return requires that the envelope contain the proper address of the Internal Revenue Service, contain sufficient prepaid postage, and be delivered to the carrier so that it will be postmarked on or before midnight of the last date for filing the return, including extensions. Failure to follow any of these requirements may result in I.R.S. deeming the return to have been filed late and assessing late filing and payment penalties and interest.
 

The federally proposed tax cuts and the Florida intangible tax proposed rollback are both heavily political issues with no clearly defined benefits to any specific taxpayers and no guarantee of passage. Of the two proposed changes, the federally proposed tax cut probably has a better chance of passage.
 

Timely Filing/Mailing of Your Tax Return: The timely filing your tax return is critical in avoiding the imposition of late filing penalties and interest. The I.R.S. has long followed a "timely mailing is timely filing" rule, which basically states that a return will be considered to have been timely filed if it postmarked by the United States Postal Service no later than the last date for filing the return. Since July 30, 1996, the I.R.S. has also applied the "timely mailing is timely filing" rule to returns submitted to the I.R.S. by private delivery services (i.e. Federal Express, UPS, etc.).

In order to be considered as being timely mailed, the documents sent must be properly addressed, which has been the main area of litigation in this arena. Various factors to consider when determining whether or not you have properly addressed the envelope include the following:

• The term "address" is generally defined to mean the designation of the place or location at which a person or organization may be reached. Thus the correct address, for tax return filing purposes, is the Internal Revenue Service designated for geographic area in which the taxpayer resides or has its principal place of business.

 
• If an envelopes does not include sufficient postage for the envelope and its contents to reach the I.R.S., it will not be considered to be properly addressed.

 
• The tax court has taken the position that the postmark stamped on the cover in which the return is mailed is the date considered for purposes of the "timely mailing is timely filing" rule, as opposed to the postmark stamped on the cover in which the return or other document is received. Thus, if a return is properly addressed and timely mailed, is returned to the taxpayer by the delivery service (U.S. Post Office, Federal Express, etc.), and re-mailed to the I.R.S. in another properly addressed envelope, it is the postmark on the first envelope which will take precedence and provide for the timely mailing of the return, even though the outer envelope eventually received by the I.R.S. may bear a date after the last filing date. In such a case, the taxpayer should make a copy of the returned envelope, and send the original returned envelope to the I.R.S. with the return. The postmark date on the inner (original) envelope, if properly addressed, will govern.

 
• Foreign postmarks are subject to different rules. The I.R.S. code that sets forth the "timely mailing is timely filing" rule does not apply to foreign postmarks. However, the I.R.S. in its internally generated rules and regulations has stated that a return bearing an official foreign postmarked dated on or before midnight as of the last date prescribed for filing, including any extension of time for such filing, will be treated as timely filed. Private delivery services should not be used for foreign mailings as the I.R.S. only recognizes official foreign postmarks.

Proposed Tax Legislation: The deepest tax cut in 20 years, proposed by the President, is reported to be turning into the biggest and broadest political struggle in decades. No clear indication of the impact of the proposed cut is available; the President states that the tax cuts are across the board and will affect every taxpayer, while his opponents state that the tax cuts will only benefit the wealthiest taxpayers. What is clear is that special interest groups are heavily lobbying members of Congress and the Senate, with supporters of the tax cut having gotten off to an earlier start than opponents of the tax cut.

On the state level, the Republican led state House advanced $222 million in tax cuts by its second day of business amid complaints from Democrats opposed to slicing revenues in a tight budget year. The chief item in the proposal is the rollback of the intangible tax on stock and bonds, which has since become stymied in the House. The intangible tax is a Depression Era tax levied on stocks, bonds and mutual funds held outside of retirement accounts. Democrats contend the rollback will primarily benefit corporations and the wealthiest taxpayers at the expense of the neediest segments of Florida's population, while Republicans contend that the rollback will primarily benefit retired citizens who are taxed on savings they have accumulated during their lifetime and bear the brunt of the tax. The rollback is intended to remove more than 500,000 taxpayers from the tax rolls. Even with a general split in support along party lines, it is reported that the cut faces "tougher sledding" in the Senate.