Year-Round Tax Information on Cable Television

On June 6, 1989, the Internal Revenue Service will begin beaming free year-round tax information to cable television viewers by satellite. The satellite program service will be transmitted to cable operators for one hour each week as part of IRS's continuing effort to inform the public on tax matters.

Programs scheduled for June 6 include tax information geared toward day care providers and people with second jobs. It also includes a 30-minute documentary to show what happens when a tax return is examined or audited.

Topics scheduled for June 13 cover tax information for specialized audiences -- older Americans (also broadcast in Spanish), children with income, and single parents. For June 20 topics include tax information for people with moving expenses, military personnel, reporting requirements for tax exempt organizations and how taxes influence behavior. Future topics include tax information for medical professionals and educators and the history of the federal tax system.

A monthly program schedule highlighting each week's programming is available to cable operators from IRS district offices.

The satellite program service will be transmitted for one hour each week on Westar IV, Transponder 6D (audio frequency 6.2 and 6.8) from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. eastern time. It is targeted to Multiple System Operators (MSOs) and single systems for their broadcast use.

Because there is no copyright on Government programming, receivers can record the programs of their choice off-air for future use. Taxpayers who own a satellite dish can receive the programs as well by directing their dishes.

The IRS also remind cable operators that it has a monthly call-in program, "Tax Line '89," broadcast Thursday evenings from 9:00 to 10:00 p.m. eastern time and available over SATCOM 3R, Transponder 2 and Westar V, Transponder 12X. This month's show is set for Thursday, June 1, 1989.

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