Student voters pay taxes, too

To the editor:

With the politically charged air that has descended on the state of Ohio as a swing state, I have heard many stories about many university students in this state, as well as here in Oberlin, that have registered and been able to vote on the same day, even though they are from many different states. The story is the same all over Ohio. The Republicans have discouraged this because they believe that many of these students support Barrack Obama.

I feel differently about this. I say welcome to Ohio. If they are registered to vote here, they are now a resident of the state of Ohio and the city of Oberlin and we welcome them and their income tax to our community. I checked with the IRS today and they confirmed my belief...registered students will now be filing their income tax forms right here, at their new place of residency, in Oberlin, Ohio. The Tax Relief and Healthcare Act of 2006 H.R. 7111 included a change in federal law that allows the Regional Income Tax Agency (RITA) on behalf of its member municipalities to obtain tax data from the IRS. IRS information enhances RITA's compliance program, audits and revenue reporting to municipalities. Presently, RITA utilizes a wide range of tools to locate delinquent non-filers.

I'm sure that all the residents of Oberlin are happy students are here.

Alice Martin

Oberlin