Bush Pays Added $7,497 in Taxes

President Bush had to pay an additional $7,497 in federal income taxes Wednesday due to an error in the reporting of his 1989 income, spokesman Marlin Fitzwater said.

The President had to file an amended return because the one he sent to the IRS last month did not include income from deferred compensation he collected last year.

He was eligible for that compensation when he turned 65 last June 12, under an arrangement with Zapata Corp., the now-defunct oil company he once headed, Fitzwater said. The added income was brought to the attention of the tax preparers after they had submitted his tax return last month, according to the explanation on his amended form.

The deferred compensation was received in the form of a paid-up life insurance policy and should have been reported because it had a cash value. The policy was valued at $26,250.

The President paid interest of $40.77, which accrued on the unpaid tax for 15 days since the income tax filing deadline, Fitzwater said. There was no penalty, he said, because the mistake was deemed to be due to “reasonable cause.”

With the mistake corrected, Bush paid total taxes of $108,879 on income of $483,030.