ss. Castlégar News 40:11 2. 1909 Many prefer fee to confusion Editor's note: An army of tawyers, accountants and tax preparers profit from the confusion clouding income While these groups aie often criticizéd, millions of Canadians would rather pay their fees than face tax time alone. By KAREN LEWIS The Canadian Press Wolfe Goodman is one of Canada's most senior tax lawyers, an amiable man-who dispenses high-priced tax ad vice to the rich and powerful But Goodman hasn't actually filled out a tax return for years, Not even for himself I can honestly say it just got too ce nplicated,”* he tells a visitor to his 22nd-floor office overlooking Toron to's financial district to asl When the intricacies of tax shelters forced Goodman k someone else'to prepare his tax return, he joined millions of Canadians who fuel a burgeoning industry The army of tax preparers, accountants and lawyers attracted by a business that repels many people are a special breed People in and near the industry cite numerous reasons for enlisting: greed, power that comes with knowledge, in. tellectual challenge prepa even summers off in the case of tax s, the industry's foot soldiers. Whatever the motivation, Canadians want their help. SIMPLICITY GONE It was so simple in 1917 wher Canada’s income tax was first introduced to help pay for mounting First World War bills. You told Ottawa your income and it figured out the tax. No grappling with unwieldy tax credits, No stress filled sessions with tax forms and guides. No need for professional help All that’s changed More than* one-third of Canada’s- tax filers pay someone to prepare their return, suggests a coming study for the Canadian Tax Foundation by Francois Vaillan court, a University of Montreal economist The Outlook is Positive Castlégar News Supplement to the The West Kootenay is. an area continuing to progress economically tn 1985, more than six million Canadians, oF 39 per cent of tax filers, paid $426 million to have somebody else prepare their taxes, Vaillancourt estimates JOIN-THE CLUB Jerry Dobbia, a stock 18-year-old Newfoundlander, was one of those relying on help this year Dobbin moved to Ontario’s Golden Horseshoe to get a factory job and send money home to his family, but he didn’t want to face his first tax return alone “My old man’s down home, so he can’t do it for me,”” Dobbin ‘says in-a thick Newfoundland accent. ‘It’s a lot éasier, no hassle.” ‘ That’s fine with Ruth Buckley, a small, tidy woman Who manages an office of tax preparer H and R Block in Cambridge, Ont; theone Dobbin visited wittre his eyes glaze over, hers brighten as the talk turns to taxes, * Ten years ago, Buckley was a homemaker and part- time bookkeeper who found herself preparing up to a dozen tax returns forfamily and friends. She signed up for an H and R Block course to find out if she was missing any deductions for her husband, Ron, who had his own business laying flooring and.tiles. H and R Block hires its preparers from the 13-week basic course and has three advanced courses. "T got hooked on it as soon as I took the course,” says Buckley, 46, just after completing a client’s return in less than half an hour. **I really enjoyed it."* She also enjoyed having summers at home with her three children, including the youngest, Kelly, who was only five then, JUST LIKE CHESS Her attraction to taxes would not surprise Goodman, the sot B-year-okd kawyer whose of fice is adorned with Thai and Canadian sculptures “it has an intellectual fascination,”’ he says of a field others have likened to a good game of ohess, ‘*It’s constan tly changing.” By The Canadian Press Facts and figures on the tax system from a coming study prepared by Francois Vaillancourt, an economist at the University of Montreal The study, for the-Canadian Tax Foundation in Toronto, surveyed 2,040 Canadians in May and June 1986 about their 1985 tax returns. A survey sample of this size is Considered accurate within two percentage points, 19 times out of 20 The study suggested: © More than six million Canadians, or, 39 per cent of tax filers, paid $426 million to have somebody else do their taxes. That compares with about 45 per cent in the Study yields tax facts United States, according to other studies. ©” 5.3 million Canadians, or 33 per cent of tax filers, did their ow turns. ¢ 4.4 million, or 28 per cent, relied on a family member or a friend to prepare their return without pay Of those who paid someone else to do their tax returns * About 3.2 million, or 51 per cent, we countants and paid an average $94 * About 2.2 million, or 36 per cent, went to tax nd paid an average $59. * About 800,000, or 13 per cent, went to another individual and paid an average $17 preparing firms 1n-1949, the same'year- Goodman graduated from law school, Canada enshrined a new Income Tax Act to replace the ‘‘temporary”’ tax introduced in 1917 Today, the act has swollen to more than 3,000 pages of grey prose and spawned a huge government bureaucracy The taxation side of Revenue Canada, with a budget of $889 million, employs 20,000 Canadians and adds another 8,000 to its payroll during peak season, from February to June. It has also produced a market for about 10,000 tax practitioners — lawyers who look for holes that can be ex- ploited in the act and accountants who apply. them — and thousands of unregulated tax preparers. As well, there's a spinoff for another industry, the book trade, as publishers scurry 1o-have experts explain the esoteric tax sytem 10 average Canadians. At tax time — January to April — 1,000 H and R Block offices spring into action and the staff at Canada’s largest firm of tax preparers swells to 7,500 from 600 year-round This year, as Canadians relearn the rules thanks to Finance Minister Michael Wilson's tax reform, tax preparers expect business to boom Revenue Canada said returns filed by early April showed that about the same number of Canadians paid for advice as in 1988, although easier returns tend to arrive fir st And while many Canadians may be confused by the new forms, turning to someone else is no guarantee of ac curacy Last year, mistakes were found in three out of 10 for- nis completed by someone other than the tax filer everyone from a family member to a tax preparer, Revenue Canada says And the odds are against those who pick a fight with the taxman. The courts rule in favor of Revenue Canada about 70 per cent of the time, says spokesman Collette Gen- tes-Hawn. Tax filers win 15 per cent of the decisions and the Apni26, 199 Castlégar News” A number of major construction projects that are about to begin and the continuing secovery of existing in dustries have led to growing optimism among the region's . leaders that the lean years of the 1980s are finally behind us <> Sometimes it's easy to overlook the positive things that are happening around us everyday. With this in mind, the rest area draw, she says Northern ecology Centre plans. exhibits By HE LEE NEC Director Nestled within the rugged mountain ranges of the Selkirks lies a gallery pursuing a vision. The vision — to porary and traditional artistic and cultural heritage. The West Kootenay National Exhibition Centre strives to achieve this vision by presenting exhibitions of art, history and ethnology drawing upon international, national and our own rich local resources. Enthusiastic response has been experienced towar- ds the school programs that have been developed to complement a variety of exhibitions. During the past year, 1,500 students from Castlegar, Trail, Nelson, Rossland and the Slocan Valley participated in mask making, printmaking, fibre, clay and many more ac- tivities which were designed to encourage student in- teraction with art and history exhibitions. The NEC regards itself as a partner with other in- dividuals and businesses encouraging tourists to enjoy the magnificent resources of this region. Indeed, out-of Castlegar News is proud to present its 10th annual Progress Edition which demonstrates that we live in an area filled with 99) and dividuals We're proud to positive aspects of people and in be part of the West Kootenay area and to show our readers on the pages that follow some of the recreation, education, business, in: dustry, the arts and tourism in ourregion. Rev Upgrading total $258 Airport acelift/ expansion Pulp Mill spending $90m this decade Resurgence of University presence in Nelson: Canadian International College/ Nelson University Centre to be protected, Bouchard says OTTAWA (CP) — A wide-ranging federal environmental program to protect the North's delicate ecology is to be announced within months, En: vironment Minister Lucien Bouchard said But Canada is going’ to start by cleaning up its own garbage in the Ar ctic this. summer, he told an inter national group of students who are participating in a marginal way in the Icewalk polar expedition “‘L assure you, the careless practices ‘Of the pasi will be stopped," he said The Icewalk expedition is made up of eight trekkers from seven codntries who are skiing about 1,000 kilometres tothe North Pole to draw attention to Arctic and global pollution Icewalk organizers have arranged to fly the students to the North to study the Arctic and its environment and tell of the experience when they return to their countries. Bouchard told the studenis: “Lhe governments of the world will not achieve our objective of a restored Ar ctic environment without hard work and substantial investment."* Canada’s first step in cleaning up the Arctic will be to remove thousands ot oil drums that have been piling up on northern Ellesmere Island, N.W.1 since the Second World War. The drums were used to transport heating and transportation fuel'to remote out posts. The government has a responsibility to clean up environmental mistakes, Bouchard said “This is particu ctic, although th mental damage is still quite scattered Examples include derelict buildings, land damaged by thoughtless use and, in particular, abandoned oil drums ly true in the Ar obvious environ: A code of standards is being developed to govern the removal of existing garbage and all future activity in the Arctic, he said The new policy ‘will ensure strict environmental impact assessments are conducted on any proposed develop- ment activities or policies affecting the Arctic.” The Environment Department has already started screening all Arctic ex- peditions and visitors to northern parks.1a.make sure they.won’t damage the environment The only thing they should leave behind is footprints, the minister said But Canada can’t do it alone, he noted Bouchard welcomed Finland's initiative to establish an international convention for the protection of the Arctic. He also said he looks for closer co-operation with the Soviet Union on environmentalmatters and scientific research Canada plans.o increase its research capability at a weather ‘station at Mould Bay on Prince Patrick Island, N.W.1 Scientific studies at Arctic weather stations will also play an increasingly significant role in warning the world of changes in the ozone layer and global warming trends, Bouchard said The 22 students from 15 countries will spend three weeks in the North beginning Thursday when they fly from Ottawa to Iqualuit, N.W.T Fwo days later they will move to Eureka on Ellesmere Island to conduct their own environmental studies and to learn how (o survive in the Arcite There was concern about the eight Icewalk trekkers Monday because they hadn't made radio contact with their Ottawa headquarters for eight days But the team was located late Monday Asteroid bypassed Earth, NASA says WASHINGTON (AP) An asteroid big erroUgi To-wipe oUt cities whizzed past Earth last month before astronomers knew it was there, showing how hard it is to forecast a natural disaster from space, a NASA scientist said The asteroid flashed by Earth at a speed of 74,000 kilometres an hour and wasn’t even detected until days after it became only a receding point of tight, the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration announced. Astronomers report the object missed the Earth by about 800,00¢ kilometres — about twice the distance betw the Earth and moon, In cosmic terms, that’s considered a close call Had it hit Earth, the asteroid would have created a crater the size of Canada’s national-capital region and spread destruction for 160 kilometres in all directions. Other-etfects would have been felt _fot thousands of kilometres, said Bevan French, a scien tist_in NASA's solar-system ex ploration division “The object would be packing the quivalent_ of 40 billion tonnes of ENE,‘ said trench: Fhat would be equal to about 40,000 hydrogen bombs all going off at the same time." Henry Holt, a retired U.S Geological Survey scientist working on a NASA-funded project to track asteroids that cross the Earth's orbit, found the asteroid in photographs taken almost a week after it flew past French said the fact the asteroid, called 1989FC, wasn't seen earlier is no surprise. These detections are made because you can photograph a trail of light as it moves against a background of fixed stars,” said French “That means the asteroid is moving across your path and not on a collision course ‘An asteroid that was heading right for you would look just like another small fined star and might be very dif ficult to detect until it was too late to do anything about it," he said French said if T989FC had hit, “it would be a very major catastrophe for which we have had no-experience, summer visitors. Our schedule of upcoming eventstof fers something for everybody We are delighted to be hosting the exhibition, foster the creation and appreciation of our contem> ~ town guests comprise @ considerable proportion Of our NEC EXHIBIT... A show on Chilean art was one of the many exhibits held at the West Kootenay National Exhibition Centre over the past year. w Unlike the Lilies: Doukhobor Textiles and Tools (organized by the Provincial Museum of Alberta and curated by Dorothy Burnham and David Goa) July 16 to Aug. 27. Unlike the Lilies celebrates the rich textile tradition of the Doukhobor community in Canada; a rare opportunity to witness exquisite rugs, clothing and household textiles and the fine craftsmanship involved in the tools used for fibre preparation Local artists John Hodges and Sheila Hogarth will be featured June 8 to July 9. Many will be familiar with the Kootenay landscapes of Slocan Valley watercolorist Hodges and his recent work will include his exploration of the human figure. Hogarth, a Rossland fibre artist, experiments with a variety of fibre techniques to create her unique collection of wearable art September will be a chance to catch the recent water¢olors and pastels depicting the Kootenays and New Mexico by Robson artist Sandra Groepler Especially for children — but grown ups will enjoy is Once Upon A Time, Sept. 2940 Oct. 22. The Vancouver Art Gallery has curated this exhibition which provides a unique opportunity to focus upon illustrations drawn from Canadian children’s literature Encounter Zoom and Goldie and a host of other characters from the creative world of some of Canada’s most talented illustrators, inclugi Harrison, Ian Wallace, Ken Nutt and Elizhbeth Cleaver, will be ittoo Accident survey conducted OTTAWA (CP) — About 19 per vent of adults had one or more acciden {sin 1987, while nearly 24 per vent were the victims of at least one crime, a sur vey by Stati People aged TS To 24 were most-at risk of being accident or crime victims, while people over age 65 had the lowest es Canada suggests. risk, the agency said ina report The findings are based on telephone interviews with 9,870 people across Canada conducted in early 1988 The ageney—estinvates that 3.8 million people had at least one accident serious enough to disrupt their normal activities for at least half a day or to result’ in out-ol-pocket expenses of $200 or more Motor vehicle accidents were the most common, accounting foF one in three accidents. Accidents related to sports and lesure activities accounted for 23 per cent of cases, work-related accidents for 21 per cent, accidents in the home for 13 per cent and others for 10 per cent RISK HIGHER People who regularly drink alcohol were at higher accident risk than teetotallers or occasional drinkers The agency estimates that 4.8 million Canadians were victims of at least one crime The most common crime was assault, with an estimated 1.4 million incidents in 1987, the agency said About 54 per cent of crimes were personal — thelt, robbery, assault and featured. Adults better yet in shape because this show will be hungt small peoples’ eye level. A host of activities are planned for families and schools. Sexual assault — while 39 per cent were household crimes — break and enter, vandalism and theft of motor vehicles or household property NOTICE West vy Power is g its Castlegar office starting Monday, May |. During renovations all normal services will be provided at 958 Columbia Avenue, located directly across Columbia Avenue from Hospital Hill. To prepare for the move, the West Kootenay Power office will be closed on Friday, April 28 and reopen May | in the new location Customers requiring services on Friday, April 28 are asked to call our Trail office ot 368-9111 or 1-800-332-1292 toll tree WEST KOOTENAY POWER PUT A LITTLE SPRING IN YOUR MAZDA After a long winter it's time to give your Mazda our Spring treatment. Come in and get the Mazda Full Circle Service and rest assured you're benefitting from the expertise of factory-trained Mazda technicians and the installation of only Genuine Mazda Parts. Do it now, then you.and your prized- possession can go and kick up your heels. SCOPE TUNE-UP Most Cars & Light Trucks 539.95 PARTS EXTRA. Free Safety Inspection ——— FOR ARROIN MENTS 4 asUegar pe pre D1 No 7956 In the Castlegor Auto Mall 365-7241 Genuine Mazda Parts & Accessories 4-Cylinder Labour Only Now . r 6&8 Cylinder Specialized Mazda Labour Only. Now ... . Service DIAMOND ANNIVERSARY . . . George and Mary Chigmaroff of 60th wedding anniversary on March 24. The ottasion was marked by a dinner with family and close friends Winlaw celebrated the! at the Doukhobor Village Restaurant. LOWEST PRICE PERFORMANCE EAGLE ST p175/70n13 RAISED WHITE LETTERS P255/60R 15 B.C. spends less on hospitals, more on doctors: BCHA VANCOUVER (CP) British Columbia spends less on hospitals and more on doctors’ services than any other province in Canada, according to statistics compiled by the B.C Health Association: for every-B-C. resident, the provin- _ Says gial government spends $84 less than the Canadian average and $161 less than what the Alberta government spends on hospitals, says a health-care summary. released Friday by the association But payouts to doctors are $52 higher-per-person-than_the-national Vancouver area Task force seeks input on seniors VANCOUVER (CP) Health Minister Peter Dueck says a four member task force will tour the province asking British Columbians to share their ideas on how to improve the average, said the report It said a surplus of doctors in the province is largely responsible for that increased Cost. The issue **must be ad dressed inspite of the government loss of billing numbe? control,” the report The provincial gove tions on doctors’ billing numbers were overturned by the B.C peal last summer billing metlicare to cut down on the number of physicians practising in the 8 and ending in Victoria June 22 Afterward, the committee will make recommendations to the government ‘on how to develop services for seniors into the next century PREMIUM ALL SEASON PERFORMANCE RADIAL : $1192 a EAGLE GT + 4 presi0n14 BLACK SERRATED LETTERS P195/70R14 135.95 OUTLINE WHITE LETTERS P215/60R14 130.95 17.00 P218/65R15 137.95 19.00 P228/70R15 «147.95 19.00 BLACK SERRATED LETTERS/ SPEED RATED 32:95 nents restric Court of Ap The province had OUTLINE WHITE LETTERS/ SPEED RATED 128. 16.50 La) RA 45 tried to restrict the number of doctors 17.60 17.00 s 8 88388888 P255/60HR 15 VISA lives of seniors. The announcement tollow a con Mitment made in this year's throne speech and provincial budget I he committee will be co-chaired by Bea Holland and John Mackay, with Jane Rogers and Dune Russell as panel members. Dueck said all four have ex tensive experience in health care, recreation and community service The committee will visit 21 com munities, beginning with the Van couver suburb of White Rock on May LAST 3 DAYS seturiay, Apri 29 GOODYEAR ALL-STAR TIRE SALE. Great moments in tires. Not so great Save money on two or more Goodyear tires and get the all new Jot-s0-great-moments-in-sports” video tape at no extra charge A great deal on tires and a great deal of fun Sale prices in effect until April 29th ODSYEAR MISTER TIRE LOWEST PRICED ALL SEASON “345% S4S p1sse0n13 WHITEWALL 5 P228/75R15 VALUE PRICED ALL SEASON RADIAL ~353" TIEMPO Pissisonts WHITEWALL E PREMIUM ALL SEASON . 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