‘Innocent Spouses’ Tell of IRS Pursuit

When Svetlana Pejanovic came to this country in 1980, she was thrilled to be here. An exchange student from what was then Yugoslavia, she met and married an American man and, although the marriage didn’t last, she remained here, worked hard, saved, even bought a small condominium.

Now, she says, she is on the verge of losing everything. Her pay has been garnished, there is a lien on her condo, and last month a government agent showed up at her door seeking to seize her personal belongings.

Her crime: signing joint tax returns during her marriage.

Pejanovic’s husband, she learned after their separation, had underpaid his taxes during their married years, and as a result of signing their returns, she is as liable as he is. The total tab now exceeds $300,000.

On Wednesday, she was among four separated or divorced women who appeared before the Senate Finance Committee to relate how they have been pursued by the Internal Revenue Service for tax debts run up by their husbands.

Although current law allows relief for “innocent spouses,” the standard is very tough and many do not qualify. The committee is crafting legislation to overhaul the IRS, and Chairman William V. Roth Jr. (R-Del.) said he will press for major changes in innocent-spouse provisions.

At the same time, the women said they have seen little effort to collect from their husbands, though their whereabouts are known.

One witness, Elizabeth Cockrell, said her ex has $2 million in Swiss bank accounts, but she claimed the IRS has shown no interest.