IS THERE ANY TRUTH TO THE CLAIM THAT FILING TAX RETURNS IS VOLUNTARY FOR ABOUT 90% OF ALL AMERICANS? THE ANSWER IS YES BUT MOST AMERICANS CAN'T OR WON'T BELIEVE IT.

WHAT IF AN IRS TREASURY AGENT TOLD YOU THE SAME THING? WOULD YOU BELIEVE IT THEN?

Joseph R. Banister, Former Special Agent of the IRS finds no law that requires most Americans to file and pay income taxes. This courageous individual decided to investigate this issue and did so for over two years. His conclusion is a result of thousands of hours of research and in his own words:

Dear Friends:

Well, the day of reckoning has arrived. On February 11, 1999, in my capacity as a Special Agent [United States Treasury Department, Criminal Investigation Division] and federal law enforcement officer sworn to support and defend the Constitution of the United States, I submitted a "preliminary report" to the Chief of the IRS Criminal Investigation Division for the Central California District. My report summarized my findings regarding allegations that the income tax and filing of federal income tax returns is voluntary, that the 16^th Amendment was never ratified, and that income taxes are not used to pay for daily government operations.

In order to ensure that unnecessary and warranted delay would not occur, I requested that my report by forwarded to top officials in the IRS up to and including the Commissioner Charles O. Rossotti, and I respectfully requested that the Commissioner or his designee respond to the evidence in my report within 30 days. Today, my Chief called me into his office and gave me a memorandum. The memorandum dated February 17, 1999, read in part:

"The Internal Revenue Service will not be responding to your request and will provide you with the necessary paperwork to tender your resignation. You will be placed on administrative leave effective upon receipt of this memorandum for a period of seven calendar days to consider what actions you wish to take."

I was told that officials at the highest levels of the Internal Revenue Service were consulted regarding a response to my report. Apparently, I have now joined the ranks of every other taxpayer who ever was ignored or otherwise rebuffed by the Internal Revenue Service when they petitioned the IRS for a reasonable explanation. The only conclusion that I can reach is that those officials thought it was better to rebuff my request and pass up a gold opportunity to prove my research wrong than to have to admit that so-called "tax protesters" and other supporters of the U.S. Constitution have been right all along. Ironically, had the IRS taken the time to address my concerns, or perhaps perform the simple task of proving the allegations wrong, I would have gladly taken been spokesman advising taxpayers not to fall for these untrue allegations for the rest of my career.

As the memorandum states, I have until Friday, February 26, 1999, the day after the 86^th anniversary of the alleged ratification of the 16^th Amendment to render my resignation. This is certainly a sad day in my life. Although I was hoping for a better result, I learned today after over two years of investigation that the Internal Revenue Service is everything that the so-called "tax protesters" said it was: non-responsive, unable to withstand scrutiny, tyrannical and an agency oblivious to the rule of law and the U.S. Constitution.

May God help us all.
Joseph R. Banister