Tuesday, April 16, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.
Protesters were calling for the abolition of the income tax.
Radio stations were handing out free coffee and mugs.
And throngs of people were clutching forms, envelopes and pencils, and scurrying about.
This was the scene Monday evening -- the last day to pay 1995 income taxes -- at the U.S. Postal Service's main office at 1001 E. Sunset Road.
"Actually, things are going quite smoothly this year," said Dee Dee Terrano, spokeswoman for the Postal Service. "The traffic has been relatively quiet, and we've had no complaints."
Perhaps, but there were many questions from taxpayers and no one from the Internal Revenue Service to answer them.
Terrano said that because of federal budget cuts, the IRS did not station representatives at the post office Monday, as the agency has done on tax days past.
And the traffic did get fairly heavy as the night wore on. Many late filers had to park a quarter-mile from the post office and walk the rest of the way.
An estimated 30 million Americans mailed their returns Monday, and Las Vegas can boast of its fair share of last-minute filers.
Terrano estimated 10,000-12,000 cars came through the post office branch from 6 p.m. to midnight.
"I think this is becoming a sort of tradition with a lot of people," Terrano said. "We see the same faces year after year. They don't mind the drive through. They like to receive the free information and promotional material."
It's true.
Jerry Johnson of Las Vegas said he filed his taxes weeks ago, but he drove down to the post office for some free refreshments.
"I guess they've run out of everything," Johnson said as he shook his head. "Last year, they had free tickets to a Stars game, pizza and coffee."
As Johnson spoke, D.P. Bracken of the Las Vegas chapter of Citizens for an Alternative Tax System handed out fliers to passing motorists.
"We want to eliminate all income taxes and replace them with a national sales tax," Bracken said. "The income tax system has been bad from day one. The Founding Fathers believed in no direct taxes. When it was first introduced, it was small. Now it has grown, and it's choking the life out of our economy."
Representatives of several radio stations also handed out fliers.
"We refer to this as hand-to-hand combat," said Kurt Mische, general sales manager of KXTZ 94.1-FM. "A lot of people brought their dogs this year. I wish I had dog bones."
One of those accompanied by a canine companion was Sharon Jacobson, an environmental consultant who parked a quarter mile from the post office to avoid the traffic.
"Poor Jasper has a sore foot," Jacobson said, pointing to her collie who wore a white sock on his left front paw.
"I've never filed this late before, and I'm not going to do it again. I can't believe all this traffic and all these people. It's a zoo."
Others said they liked the commotion.
"I thought it was a nice night, so I walked over here to check my mailbox," said Jeff Johnson, who lives only a few blocks from the post office. "It's fun to see all the people."
Marie Moretti, who manages Mary's Diner at Sam's Town, agreed.
"It's a gala affair. My friends and I came down to check it out," she said.
But Dave Assad, a Las Vegas tree trimmer, did not share in the excitement.
"This is the first time I filed on the last day," Assad said, shaking his head. "I can't believe all this is going on."
Assad said he would make sure to file early next year.
archive
