Tax Protests Most Likely In Idaho, Its Environs

It’s tax time again, and an Internal Revenue Service official says tax protesters in the Intermountain West are a different breed than in other regions.

“I just think there is a different atmosphere, a different mentality, more prevalent to take action and maybe somewhat hostile,” said Susan Dukes, an IRS financial branch chief based in Denver.

During the past three years, Idaho has had four times as many tax violation cases as Colorado, a much more populous state. But the numbers still suggest a small sample of the public. The number of cases recommended for criminal prosecution in Idaho has not necessarily grown over the years. In 1995, two cases were suggested, 10 the next year and seven in 1997.

In south-central Idaho’s most recent case, professional figure skater Gary Beacom in Sun Valley was sentenced to 21 months in prison and a $50,000 fine for tax evasion. The Canadian citizen and resident alien said he considered himself a constitutionalist, charging the government did not prove he owed income tax.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Terry Derden of Boise said that in such tax cases, defendants try to hide behind the U.S. Constitution.

But, “if you break through the constitutional argument, you find pure and simple fraud,” he said, adding the agency brings criminal charges to bear only after checking other routes.