Background
Everett Vincent Street failed to pay his 2018 income tax. After the Internal Revenue Service sent him a notice of deficiency, he petitioned the United States Tax Court pro se. He argued he was not a person made liable for the tax and that the federal income tax violated the Sixteenth Amendment as an unconstitutional, non-apportioned direct tax. The Tax Court dismissed the petition and ordered him to pay the deficiency and penalties.
The court’s reasoning
The Eleventh Circuit held that all of Street’s arguments were frivolous. The court cited prior precedent establishing that claims that wages are not taxable income or that a citizen is not required to file a tax return are patently frivolous. The court also cited precedent deeming the argument that the income tax violates the Sixteenth Amendment frivolous. Because the remaining arguments stemmed from these frivolous ones, the court declined to address them further.
What it means going forward
The decision reinforces that challenges to federal income tax liability based on the argument that the tax is unconstitutional or that the taxpayer is not a liable person are without merit and will be dismissed as frivolous.