A lawsuit was filed in 2006 against former Aetna (AET) CEO John Rowe by the Wealth Transfer Group for transferring stock options to a “grantor-retained annuity trust” in order to minimize gift and estate taxes. It was apparently a patented technique; the case was settled in a confidential agreement involving no admission of liability.

The government itself is equally creative at thinking up new ways of making more money. A few years back, Kansas came up with a brilliant idea. The state now requires drug dealers to buy tax stamps in Topeka, which must, by law, be affixed to the product.

Why not simply bust the dealers when they walk in to comply with the law? The Fifth Amendment protects US citizens from self-incrimination.

Here’s what the state’s Revenue Department’s website says: “A dealer is not required to give his/her name or address when purchasing stamps and the Business Tax Bureau is prohibited from sharing any information relating to the purchase of drug-tax stamps with law enforcement or anyone else.”

Dealers who don’t buy stamps face 5 years in prison and fines for the taxes unpaid. The taxes are pretty substantial, too: Pursuant to K.S.A. 79-5202, if you’re selling marijuana, you’re required to collect sales tax from your clientele as follows:
 

• Processed, $3.50 per gram
  
  
• Wet plant, $0.40 per gram
  
  
• Dry plant, $0.90 per gram

In the rock ‘em, sock ‘em world of narcotics? Pursuant to K.S.A. 79-5202, sales tax rates are:
 

• If customarily sold by weight (cocaine, methamphetamine, etc.) $200 per gram
  
  
• If customarily sold by Dosage Unit (pills, etc.) $2,000 per 50 units
  

The cherry on top? Some say trying dealers for both tax evasion and distribution/ possession constitutes double jeopardy, meaning that if one buys his or her tax stamps, he or she can't also be tried for drug sales.

Remember - they got Al Capone for tax evasion. Not for murder, kidnapping, racketeering or giving Chicago a bad name.

Yes, there have been exceptions. A handful of dealers have bought the stamps, affixed them to their “product,” but still got busted on tax charges.

Why?

They didn’t check their calendars; the stamps had passed their expiration dates - they’re only valid for 3 months at a time.