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U.S. NEWS Tuesday 19 april 2022
Rain dampens 1st White House Easter Egg Roll since 2019

By DARLENE SUPERVILLE in his arms. The Easter egg
Associated Press roll featured several other
WASHINGTON (AP) — stations, including a talent
Snoopy, Charlie Brown and show, a place to teach
"Tonight Show" host Jimmy kids about farming, a pho-
Fallon roamed the soggy to-taking station, a physi-
White House grounds on cal "egg-ucation" zone
Monday for the first Easter with an obstacle course,
egg roll since before the and a "cafetorium" where
coronavirus pandemic. children learned to make
Undaunted by rain, Presi- treats. Actor-singer Kristin
dent Joe Biden and his wife, Chenoweth also appeared
Jill, kicked off the equiva- in the reading nook.
lent of a daylong garden The White House gates
party for some 30,000 kids opened at around 7 a.m.,
and adults, including ce- with the first of five waves of
lebrities and costumed people streaming through.
characters. Many came prepared for
A pair of Easter bunnies es- the cold, damp weather
corted the Bidens onto the with umbrellas, rain pon-
Blue Room balcony to wel- chos and plastic covers
come the crowd to their over baby strollers.
backyard. The first lady Maya Kennedy, 10, of Port-
chose "egg-ucation" as President Joe Biden appears and salutes with first lady Jill Biden and the Easter Bunnies on the Blue land, Oregon, said she was
the theme. The South Lawn Room balcony at the White House during the White House Easter Egg Roll, Monday, April 18, 2022, having a good time at her
was turned into a school in Washington. Associated Press first White House Easter egg
community because "edu- roll despite the weather.
cation never stops," said Jill citing their joy, laughter as groups of children used first lady quickly read aloud She had seen some of the
Biden, a community col- and occasional outbursts of wooden spoons to coax "so you're all not soaking PBS KIDS characters and
lege professor. "The deter- "there's the Easter bunny." brightly dyed hard-boiled wet," she told those who had heard the first lady
mined spirit of education is Biden's infant grandson, eggs across a patch of wet had been waiting in the speak. The fifth grader said
what we wanted to honor Beau, was among several grass to the finish line. light rain. Fallon joined she also wanted to meet Jill
in this Easter Egg Roll," she family members present, "Ready, set," Biden said be- them afterward and read Biden.
said. President Biden said it including the boy's par- fore blowing a whistle to his own children's book, "She's really cool," Maya
was "so special" to be able ents, Hunter Biden and his start the competition. He "Nana Loves You More." Jill said near the reading nook
to gather this year after wife, Melissa. Also on hand later coached a young Biden's grandchildren call as she watched the first
the pandemic forced the were the Bidens' daughter egg-roller, saying "Go, You her "Nana." lady pose for photos with
White House to cancel the Ashley Biden, and Natalie got it!" Hunter Biden introduced participants after her read-
2020 and 2021 Easter egg Biden, one of their grand- The couple then visited himself to people sitting in ing, including with White
rolls. "It means so much to daughters. the reading nook, where the reading area, and to House press secretary Jen
see and hear the children After their remarks, the pres- Biden held up a copy of others lined up on the other Psaki and her family.
and all the families show up ident and first lady went "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, side of a fence, at times The White House Easter Egg
to be here today," he said, down to the lawn to watch What Do You See?" as the carrying his infant son Beau Roll dates to 1878.q

On Tax Day, an extension may be

better than rushing a return

By FATIMA HUSSEIN payers still unaccounted more likely to get a double
Associated Press for, with many scrambling look from the IRS."
WASHINGTON (AP) — Mon- to submit their documents "You're much better off ex-
day is Tax Day — the fed- by Monday. tending than amending,"
eral deadline for individual Nina Tross, executive direc- she said.
tax filing and payments — tor of the National Society The IRS this year is facing its
and the IRS expects to re- of Tax Professionals, said biggest backlog in history.
ceive tens of millions of last- that if people haven't filed At the end of the 2021 filing
minute filings electronically their taxes by now, "they're season, the agency had A W-4 form on Feb. 5, 2020, in New York. Monday is Tax Day, the
federal deadline for individual tax filing and payments.
and through paper forms. better off filing an exten- 35.3 million returns waiting Associated Press
As of April 8, the IRS had re- sion." for processing. One reason
ceived more than 103 mil- But, she added, "People is that every paper docu- viewed by IRS employees have become increasingly
lion returns for this tax sea- don't realize that filing an ment that goes into the IRS and treated as if submitted complicated.
son, and it had issued more extension has zero effect" is processed by a human, on paper even if they are Lisa Greene-Lewis, a cer-
than 63 million refunds as long as they have paid according to the IRS. e-filed. tified public accountant
worth more than $204 bil- their income taxes by Tax Another is that the agency This year will be one of the and a spokesperson at Tur-
lion. Day. has administered massive most challenging for the boTax, said that if people
For comparison, last year "An extension is merely coronavirus pandemic-re- agency, with its record low still intend to file a return
more than 169 million peo- filing a return at a later lated relief programs over staffing numbers. The IRS by Tax Day, "I would gather
ple completed an income date," Tross said. "If you rush the last several years — like workforce is the same size all your documents in one
tax return by the end of the through a return to get it the advanced Child Tax it was in 1970, though the place so you don't leave
year. That probably leaves out the door, and you have Credit. U.S. population has grown anything out, like W-2s and
nearly 40% of this year's tax- to amend it later, you're And some forms are re- exponentially and tax laws 1099s."q