ATLANTA - Republican gubernatorial candidate Sonny Perdue released seven years worth of personal income tax returns Tuesday, responding to a challenge from Democratic Governor Barnes. <br>
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Besides showing that last year was a good one for him, allowing him to enjoy adjusted gross income of nearly $310,000, the reports showed Perdue incurred modest penalties from the state in six of the seven years for underpaying his estimated quarterly state taxes. <br>
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The penalties ranged from just $4-$348. <br>
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Perdue, a former state senator, owns a grain and fertilizer business in Houston County. He buys from local farmers, stores their grain and sells in bulk to large commodity concerns. <br>
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Campaign spokesman Dan McLagan said the penalties assessed against Perdue were ``a hazard of being in the agriculture business.'' <br>
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Deputy Revenue Commissioner Bobby Lenihan said he was not familiar with Perdue's case but that underpayment penalties happen ``quite often, particularly during the 1990s with the volatility of capital gains.'' <br>
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Barnes, who has regularly disclosed his annual tax returns, sought to make disclosure an issue last month by announcing he will push for stronger ethics laws next year including a requirement for statewide candidates to release seven years of tax returns.
