Travis H. Long, CPA, Inc. Blog

Originally published in the Cedar Street Times

April 15, 2016

If you were (or still are!) a last minute tax return filer, you may have some pleasant news this year – you have three more days to procrastinate!  If you are reading this article on April 15, you might be wondering, “Why is it a normal workday, and my taxes are not due?”

The answer is “Emancipation Day.”  No, we are not talking about emancipation from taxation, but emancipation from slavery.  On April 16, 1862, President Lincoln signed the District of Columbia Compensated Emancipation Act.  This act freed slaves in Washington, D.C., and compensated the prior slave owners for having to give up what was perceived as a financial loss.  This was the only instance were prior slave owners were compensated by the federal government.

The importance of the District of Columbia Compensated Emancipation Act is that it was seen as the first major victory that led to the abolition of slavery.  There had been attempts in the past to accomplish similar feats, but they had all failed.  In fact, when Abraham Lincoln was still a Senator, he tried in 1849 to accomplish this task, but it did not get enough votes to pass the legislature.  Even the decade prior to that saw several failed attempts spearheaded by others.

The District of Columbia Compensated Emancipation Act served as a precursor to the much broader Emancipation Proclamation, nine months later, that freed all slaves in Confederate territories.  Whereas the District of Columbia Compensated Emancipation Act freed about 3,000 enslaved people, the Emancipation Proclamation freed about three million enslaved people!

The Emancipation Proclamation, although often thought of as abolishing slavery, did not actually do so.  It was a wartime power instituted by Lincoln (not voted on by Congress), and it only freed slaves in the Confederate territories that were rebelling.  There were still four non-Confederate states in the South where slavery was legal, even after the Emancipation Proclamation.  It was not until the 13th Amendment to the Constitution was passed, and then ratified on December 6, 1865, that slavery was officially abolished in the United States.

The District of Columbia Compensated Emancipation Act, although celebrated in various capacities since 1862, did not become an official legal holiday in Washington D.C. until 2005.  The first year the tax return filing deadline was changed was for the 2006 tax returns due April 17, 2007.  Since the Emancipation Day Celebration fell on a Monday, and the IRS deadline is always the next business day if the 15th falls on a nonbusiness day, the due date was bumped to Tuesday the 17th.  That year, only Washington D.C. residents received an extra day, and everybody else still had to file on April 16.

Tax year 2011 was the next conflict, and the first time the whole country received an extra day, and is just like this year where April 15 falls on a Friday.  Whereas, the IRS moves their due date to the next business day when April 15 falls on a nonbusiness day, the Emancipation Day celebration moves to the prior business day.  Since April 16 was a Saturday in 2011, as it is now, Emancipation Day moves its celebration to Friday April 15, and then the IRS turns around and says, “Okay, today is a holiday, so we move our due date to the next business day,” which results in Monday the 18th!  Phew!  And fortunately California says, “We will just do whatever the IRS does,” – a rare but appreciated concession in a state that enjoys nonconformity.

Prior articles are republished on my website at www.tlongcpa.com/blog .

Travis H. Long, CPA, Inc. is located at 706-B Forest Avenue, PG, 93950 and focuses on trust, estate, individual, and business taxation. Travis can be reached at 831-333-1041. This article is for educational purposes.  Although believed to be accurate in most situations, it does not constitute professional advice or establish a client relationship.