ÆäÀÌÁö À̹ÌÁö
PDF
ePub

GENERAL ORDERS, No. 54. I__Paragraphs 8, 12, and 16, General Orders, No. 50, War Department, 1914, as republished in Paragraph I, General Orders, No. 13, War Department, 1915, announcing the instructions governing the withholding of the normal tax of 1 per cent at the source, are rescinded, and the following substituted therefor:

WAR DEPARTMENT, WASHINGTON, September 30, 1915.

8. A withholding agent shall not withhold the normal tax of 1 per cent until the payments made by such withholding agent to any one person in a calendar year aggregate in excess of $3,000, when he shall deduct and withhold upon the entire amount paid by him unless exemption is claimed on Treasury Department Form 1007 revised, and then only on the amount in excess of the amount of the exemption claimed. In case the exemption notice is not filed until after withholding has been made, the withholding agent may, at any time prior to rendering his annual list return, refund the amount of tax withheld to the extent of the exemption claimed, provided such exemption is claimed prior to January 30 of the year following the tax year.

In order to enable these adjustments to be made, withholding agents paying monthly will not file their return prior to January 30 following the close of the calendar year covered by the return, January 29 being the last day on which exemption certificates can be filed for the preceding year.

The appropriate time for a withholding agent to make his annual return is between January 30 and the last day of February following the calendar year covered by the return.

With the exception of withholding agents on duty in the Philippine Islands, China, and at remote Alaskan and foreign stations, the return should be filed so as to be in the hands of the proper collector of internal revenue by March 1. In the excepted cases the return should be filed so as to be in the hands of the collector by March 31. Withholding agents on duty in the Philippine Islands, China, and at all stations beyond the continental limits of the United States, except Alaska, should file their return with the collector of internal revenue, Baltimore, Md. Those in Alaska

2

should file their return with the collector of internal revenue, Tacoma, Wash.

Exemption certificates need not be in duplicate.

12. When a disbursing officer is relieved from duty because of expiration of detail, retirement, resignation, etc., he will render the return required in his capacity as a withholding agent at the same time as he would have rendered it if he had continued on disbursing duty.

In case of the death of a disbursing officer the board appointed to settle his accounts will, if the disbursements made by the deceased require it, furnish the proper collector of internal revenue with a return, in duplicate, on Treasury Department Form 1042, as of date of death, accompanied with a statement that the amount of the withholdings, if any, are on deposit in the Treasury of the United States to the credit of the special deposit account of the deceased. All claims for exemption, Form 1007 revised, or for refundment of excessive withholdings, Treasury Department Form 1008 revised, which may have been filed with the deceased will be forwarded to the collector of internal revenue, together with the return on Form 1042. A certified copy of the Form 1042 will be filed with the findings of the board.

When a disbursing officer is directed to change station he will before departing from his old station provide himself with such data as may be necessary to enable him to make proper withholdings from any officer who may have been paid by him at the old station, should such an officer present accounts to him at the new station.

Claims for exemption filed with a disbursing officer should be retained by such officer for submission with his annual list return of withholdings. In all cases when an officer ceases disbursing at any particular station he will leave at such station a certified list of the claims for exemption which have been filed with him in order that his successor may have knowledge thereof. In case of death the list will be prepared by the board of officers appointed to settle his accounts.

16. Officers on duty or residing beyond the continental limits of the United States who have no legal residence in the United States should prepare and forward their annual return of net income to the collector of internal revenue at

3

Baltimore, Md., in whose district Washington is located, unless they be in Alaska, in which event the return should be sent to the collector of internal revenue at Tacoma, Wash. The return should be forwarded in time to reach the office of the collector not later than March 1 of each year.

[2165465 F-A. G. O.]

II__The following ruling of the Acting Commissioner of Internal Revenue, dated August 24, 1915, is published for the information and guidance of all concerned:

This office acknowledges receipt of your letter of August 17, 1915, enclosing a copy of General Orders, No. 13, War Department, of March 13, 1915, containing instructions to disbursing officers of the Quartermaster Corps relative to withholding the normal income tax of 1 per cent at the source.

You invite attention to paragraphs 8 and 12 of the General Order, and ask whether the former may not be amended, consistently with law and regulations, to prescribe April 1 next succeeding the tax year as the date on which withholding returns may be filed in the cases of the disbursing officers of your corps serving in the Philippine Islands, China, and at remote Alaskan and foreign stations; and whether the latter, which provides that when a withholding officer is relieved from duty in the corps because of expiration of detail, etc., he will turn over to his successor all amounts of tax withheld and all claims for exemption and deduction, is in conflict with the rulings of the office which contemplate that a withholding officer must, himself, render his annual list return of the amounts withheld by him.

In reply you are advised that the extension of 30 days, granted by law in the case of absence, may be automatically applied to Government disbursing officers serving in the Philippine Islands, China, and at remote Alaskan and foreign stations, in accordance with the directions issued by this office to collectors of internal revenue in IT-MIM 1170 of February 26, 1915.

This action is taken because of the manifest impossibility for returns to be filed on or before March 1 next succeeding the tax year and, at the same time, allow taxpayers the privilege granted by law of filing claims for exemption and deductions within the period limited by a date "thirty days prior to the day on which the return of his income is due." Your attention is directed to the fact, however, that an extension of the period in which returns are required to be filed is limited by the law to 30 days from March 1, which would make the date March 31 next succeeding the

4

tax year as the date on or before which returns should be filed in the cases cited by you, instead of April 1, as suggested by you.

In this connection your attention is directed to the fact that officers on duty in the Philippine Islands, China, and at all stations beyond the continental limits of the United States, are required to file their returns with the collector of internal revenue at Baltimore, Md., but that Alaska falls within the collection district of the collector of internal revenue at Tacoma, Wash.

Your understanding is correct that paragraph 12 of the order is in conflict with the rulings of the office, notwithstanding that the Department decision of January 15, 1915, is incorporated as Section II of the order. The proper interpretation to be placed on the decision in question is pointed out by the fact that the income-tax law makes each disbursing officer of the Government personally liable for the normal tax of 1 per cent on amounts passing through his hands, and, therefore, he can not shift this liability to another in the routine of military succession.

It is the opinion of the office that paragraph 12 should be amended to conform with the decision of January 15, 1915, as suggested by you.

By authority of the Comptroller of the Treasury, disbursing officers are authorized to ignore so much of the decision of the Comptroller of August 11, 1914, published in the last paragraph of page 2, General Orders, No. 74, War Department, October 1, 1914, as is in conflict with the ruling announced in the foregoing letter of the Acting Commissioner of Internal Revenue of August 24, 1915.

[2165465 F-A, G. O.]

III__General Orders, No. 194, War Department, 1910, is rescinded (except as indicated in section 1 of this paragraph), and the following instructions governing the examination, appointment, and promotion of sergeants major of the Coast Artillery Corps are published for the information and guidance of all concerned :

1. Appointments as sergeants major, junior grade, of the Coast Artillery Corps will continue to be made as now provided in General Orders, No. 194, War Department, 1910, until December 15, 1916. On and after that date only those who have successfully completed the prescribed clerical course at the Coast Artillery School will be eligible for ap

5

pointment as sergeants major, junior grade, Coast Artillery Corps.

2. Vacancies in the grade of sergeant major, senior grade, will be filled, as they occur, by promotion from sergeant major, junior grade, in the order of seniority, but subject to examination. In case of failure to pass the prescribed examination, candidates will not be reexamined within one year, and in case of a second failure they will be discharged for the convenience of the Government.

3. The candidates will be examined in general regulations and the practical preparation of papers.

4. The relative weights given subjects in this examination will be: General regulations, 5; practical preparation of papers, 5.

5. No candidate will be considered proficient who obtains less than 75 per centum as a general average or less than 65 per centum on any subject.

6. In case of a failure of a sergeant major, junior grade, in the examination for promotion, the next ranking sergeant major, junior grade, will be eligible for promotion.

[2322270, A. G. O.]

IV_Clauses a and d, section 3, Paragraph II, General Orders, No. 203, War Department, 1908, are amended to read as follows:

a. Sergeants major, senior grade: As prescribed in orders from the War Department.

d. Electrician sergeants, second class; master gunners; and sergeants major, junior grade, will be appointed from graduates of the Department of Enlisted Specialists, Coast Artillery School, as prescribed in General Orders, No. 46, War Department, 1915.

[2322270, A. G. O.]

V__Paragraph 42, General Orders, No. 70, War Department, 1913, relating to the issue of ordnance and ordnance stores to educational institutions at which officers of the Army are detailed, is amended, and paragraph 48 of that order, as amended by section 2, Paragraph I, General Orders, No. 14, War Department, 1915, is further amended, as follows: 42. The last sentence is amended to read as follows: Six sets per company of the authorized fencing equipment (Infantry), except the fencing musket, will also be supplied.

« ÀÌÀü°è¼Ó »