How Dumb Is This? IRS Agents Pursue Sacramento Car Wash Owner for 4 Cents in Back Taxes

2 IRS agents in dark suits recently paid a personal visit to a Sacramento car wash owner seeking 4 cents in back taxes according to an article published in the “Sacramento Bee” on March 13, 2010. This from the article:

It was every businessperson’s nightmare.

Arriving at Harv’s Metro Car Wash in midtown Wednesday afternoon were two dark-suited IRS agents demanding payment of delinquent taxes. “They were deadly serious, very aggressive, very condescending,” says Harv’s owner, Aaron Zeff.

The really odd part of this: The letter that was hand-delivered to Zeff’s on-site manager showed the amount of money owed to the feds was … 4 cents.

Inexplicably, penalties and taxes accruing on the debt – stemming from the 2006 tax year – were listed as $202.31, leaving Harv’s with an obligation of $202.35.

Zeff, who also owns local parking lots and is the president of the Midtown Business Association, finds the situation a bit comical.

“It’s hilarious,” he says, “that two people hopped in a car and came down here for just 4 cents. I think (the IRS) may have a problem with priorities.”

Now he’s trying to figure out how penalties and interest could climb so high on such a small debt. He says he’s never been told he owes any taxes or that he’s ever incurred any late-payment penalties in the four years he’s owned Harv’s.

In fact, he provided us with an Oct. 22, 2009, letter from the IRS that states Harv’s “has filed all required returns and addressed any balances due.”

IRS spokesman Jesse Weller isn’t commenting “due to privacy and disclosure laws.”

Here’s my question – Why, at some point in this process, didn’t someone at the IRS stop for a moment and apply some common sense to this situation coming to the conclusion that it would cost a lot more to send two suits out to collect money than the effort was actually worth?

Here’s my second question – If the government makes decisions like this, do we really want them making decisions about healthcare?

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