Dear Mr. Dooley,
I read in the St. Louis Post that you recently released your personal income tax return for public inspection. I do taxes for a living so of course I had to check. The first thing I noticed is that you prepare your own taxes. The second thing I noticed is that you missed a big deduction. Mr. Dooley, you forgot to claim the real estate taxes that you paid in 2009. You missed out on a $1,056 deduction (real estate taxes paid is public record.)
Mr. Dooley, the tax money you would have saved on this deduction alone would have covered the cost of having your return professionally prepared. Who knows what else you could have missed that I can’t just pull up on the internet.
Mr. Dooley, I’m looking forward to seeing you in my office this coming February. If you’re going to be making your tax returns public, they’d better be right.