Democrat Dirty Laundry: "Deadbeat" Charlie Rangel Still Not Paying Taxes
“Deadbeat” Charlie Rangel Still Not Paying Taxes
Apparently Embattled Harlem Rep. Can Write the Laws, Just Can’t Actually Follow Them
SPIN CYCLE: Speaker Pelosi Vowed that Democrats Would Lead the “Most Honest, Most Open, and Most Ethical Congress in History”
“Our goal is to restore accountability, honesty and openness at all levels of government. To do so, we will create and enforce rules that demand the highest ethics from every public servant, sever unethical ties between lawmakers and lobbyists, and establish clear standards that prevent the trading of official business for gifts,” (Nancy Pelosi’s “A New Direction for America, Page 21).
RINSE CYCLE: Not Content With Concealing Income and Magically Discovering Hundreds of Thousands in New Assets, Tax Boss Now Fails to Pay Property Taxes
“The Tax Man is a deadbeat.
Rep. Charles Rangel, chairman of the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee, has failed to pay taxes on two plots of land he has in New Jersey, records show.
Rangel’s ownership of the small, undeveloped properties came to light on Tuesday only after he drastically amended at least six years of financial-disclosure forms he had filed annually with the House clerk as required by law.
The corrected filings as much as doubled the amount of personal wealth Rangel has claimed going back years and revealed at least $780,000 in previously unreported assets.
The Harlem Democrat concealed somewhere between $38,902 and $116,800 in 2007 income, according to the revised filings.
Among the assets he failed to list was a checking account containing somewhere between $250,000 and $500,000.
Also undisclosed for years were two lots he owns in Glassboro, NJ, about 100 miles from the city.
Rangel is delinquent on his taxes on that property, according to the Gloucester County Clerk’s office.
He currently owes $159.39 in unpaid property taxes for the second and third quarters of this year, according to the clerk’s office.
Rangel’s second-quarter taxes were due May 1 and his third-quarter taxes were due at the beginning of this month.
Skating on property taxes is nothing new for Rangel.
A review of property records for the borough of Glassboro revealed at least six tax liens levied against Rangel’s property during the past 16 years.
Just last year, two separate liens were levied against both properties owned by Rangel.
The June 5, 2008, liens totaled $339.64.
On Dec. 6, 2001, a tax lien was filed against the property for $125.57 in unpaid taxes.
Rangel’s earliest tax lapse, according to the records still on file, was June 24, 1993, when a tax lien was filed against him for failure to pay $57.53 in property taxes.
In each case, Rangel eventually paid the lien and interest to prevent foreclosure on the properties.
Rangel’s office did not respond to repeated questions yesterday from The Post about his failure to pay taxes.
Meanwhile, Rangel was scheduled to hold a press conference yesterday just as dozens of stories revealed his ongoing ethical woes in Congress.
Rangel canceled the press conference at the last minute, citing “changes in his schedule,” according to one participant.” (“Tax Chief Charlie A Tax ‘Cheat,’ Too, NY Post, August 27, 2009)
To read the full article, click here: http://www.nypost.com/seven/08272009/news/regionalnews/tax_chief_charlie_a_tax_cheat__too_186678.htm
###