Tax Panhandlers Like Anybody Else
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- May
- 30
If panhandlers can sue on First Amendment grounds, then maybe they ought to report their “receipts” to the Internal Revenue Service and be taxed like the rest of us. Some of these guys pull in loads of money and wouldn’t Uncle Sam want a piece of that action?
I bring this up because of the case of a homeless panhandler by the name of Eric Hoffstead.
Hoffstead is currently residing in a cell at the Westchester County Jail, an on-and-off address for the past few months as a result of missing a court appearance and a subsequent charge of trespassing at a public housing project.
But here’s the best part. Hoffstead now believes that getting thrown into the can for begging was a violation of his right to free speech. I love it…and you know his actual “speech” probably didn’t go much beyond, “Hey man, got any money?” His case rests largely on a 1992 federal District Court ruling that New York City’s enforcement of the state law was unconstitutional.
Nevertheless, more than 2,300 panhandlers have been arrested statewide since the ruling.
Hoffstead could very well succeed in this. And then what? If it comes down to the prospect of a free and open beggars bazaar, then government should step in and screw it up, just like it does with all forms of free enterprise.
Panhandlers should be licensed under an annual fee structure and forced to file tax returns. I can see it now: A Westchester County Panhandler Bureau, complete with staff, stamps and official certificates. Another whole bureaucracy would be created!
This entry was posted
on Wednesday, May 30th, 2007 at 6:33 pm by Phil Reisman.
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Phil Reisman is a veteran journalist and native of Westchester County. He began his career in 1977 as the head copy boy of a startup New York City newspaper that quickly went belly up. Reisman was not to blame for the newspaper's failure, or so he claims.
Oops! Thar’ she blows again. Indian Point 2 is off due to a broken water valve. It’s One O’clock, do you know if your nuclear power plant is up and running?
Keystone cops would look less foolhardy than the bumbling buffoons who run Indian Point. How could a responsible corporation allow false alerts regarding Indian Point to be generated from a plant in Massachusetts and sent to the four counties surrounding the Indian Point plant. They can’t seem to be able to handle the simple things, why should anyone have the slightest bit of confidence that they could handle a real emergency.
Interesting idea, but probably unenforceable – like the begging law itself now. (PS, I represent Mr. Hoffstead in this case.) – Carl D. Birman, Esq.
Hello Mr. Birman! I had a feeling I might hear from you. Panhandlers have always interested me. I’d like to talk to your client.
Dear Mr. Reisman, by all means give me a call at the office, 914-630-4680, and when Mr. Hoffstead is released from custody I’ll put the two of you in touch. Very truly yours, Carl D. Birman, Esq.