Guthrie
Guthrie v. Commissioner
Opinion
Lead Opinion
*671 MEMORANDUM **
Todd B. Guthrie, a licensed physician, appeals pro se from the tax court’s decision upholding a deficiency determination after Guthrie failed to file a tax return for tax year 2002. We have jurisdiction under 26 U.S.C. § 7482 . We review a tax court’s legal conclusions de novo and its findings of fact for clear error. Charlotte’s Office Boutique, Inc. v. Comm’r, 425 F.3d 1203, 1211 (9th Cir.2005). We affirm.
The tax court properly upheld the deficiency determination based on the Form 4340 for the year in question because Guthrie failed to present any evidence rebutting the presumption of its correctness. See Hughes v. United States, 953 F.2d 531, 535 (9th Cir.1992).
We reject Guthrie’s contention that he was excused from filing a tax return on the ground that 26 U.S.C. § 151 (d) sets forth the amount of a personal exemption as a formula rather than a fixed amount, because this argument does not undercut his obligation to use the formula to determine the amount of taxes owed. See 26 U.S.C. § 1 (setting forth basic tax rates for every income level); see also 26 U.S.C. § 6011 (requiring individuals liable for tax to provide a return).