A Quick Look at Taxes

Taxes are important, and many adults—including your parents—spend lots of time during March and early April to make sure their taxes are done correctly!

What are Taxes and Who Collects Them?
Taxes are required payments of money to governments that are used to provide public goods and services for the benefit of the community as a whole.

Taxes are collected by and paid to the Internal Revenue Service .The IRS is the federal agency that collects income taxes in the United States.

Where Does the Tax Money Go?
When you pay your federal income taxes, you're helping to pay for federally-funded projects, including:

• Interstate highways
• Armed forces (Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines)
• Health care for the elderly

Your state taxes pay for projects that the state pays for, such as:

• Education
• Health care
• Welfare benefits

How Can You File Your Taxes?
To “file your taxes” means to mail or otherwise send to an IRS service center the taxpayer's information, in a particular format, about income and tax liability. This information, which is the tax return, can be filed on paper, electronically (e-file), or by telephone (TeleFile).

Electronic Filing or e-filing is the sending of tax information directly to the IRS using telephones or computers. People can file electronically, using a touch-tone telephone, using a personal computer and tax preparation software, or using a tax professional.

Keep Learning!
Right now, you probably aren’t paying taxes, but your parents are. Now is a good time to start learning all you need to know about filing your taxes—and keep learning because tax laws change. Learn all you can, and when the time comes to file your tax return, you can do it right the first time! (Hint: Visit the IRS Web site for accurate tax information.)