Benjamin Franklin’s axiom about death and taxes is altogether relevant this time of year with the deadline to file federal income taxes coming Tuesday.

Taxpayers were given a small extension this year because the traditional filing date of April 15 falls during a weekend, and April 16 is both Emancipation Day — observed by Washington D.C. — and Patriot’s Day, a holiday observed by an IRS processing facility that serves six eastern states.

“If taxpayers haven’t filed at this point, unless they have a very simple return, I suggest that they file for an extension,” Ferriday Certified Public Accountant Jeri Sue Tosspon said.

“The extension would make it less likely that they would make a mistake in the rush to get it filed,” she said.

Vidalia resident Alvin Davis was unequivocal in his stance toward taxes.

“Taxes?” he said. “I hate them.”

Hate them or not, Davis filed his federal income taxes electronically earlier this year to remove the hassle of paperwork.

Because he works out-of-state, however, he was forced to file his state taxes by mail.

“It gets mailed to Oklahoma and they take out what they want, and then it gets mailed to Louisiana, and they take out what they want,” he said. “If there’s anything left, I get it.”

The advent of electronic filing has made it easier not only for taxpayers who want to file on their own documents, but for accountants as well, Tosspon said.

“We do about half of our tax returns electronically,” she said. “It makes it simple for us, simple for the taxpayer and it can be processed faster than if done by hand.”

The swiftly approaching deadline is keeping CPAs across the Miss-Lou busy.

“We’re working 12-hour days,” said Billy Gillon, firm partner with Smith, Turner and Reeves, an accounting firm in Natchez. “That’s typical, starting in the middle of March.”

And business gets busier every year, he said.

Gillon, whose firm handles mostly businesses, said one cause of the last-minute push was because lots of information, like investment numbers, isn’t available until close to the deadline.

“The problem is, when you rush to prepare something, you’re more prone to errors,” Gillon said. “But it’s been this way forever, and it’s not going to change.”

Benny Jeansonne, CPA and partner with Silas Simmons, said his firm felt the pressure, too.

“We are working pretty long hours right now,” Jeansonne said. “It seems like more people waited a little longer than normal to bring in estimations for various reasons.”

Procrastinators should do the best they can and file for an extension, said Billy Parker, district coordinator for AARP Tax-Aide, a free tax-filing program hosted by the Armstrong Library.

“And don’t wait until this time to start next year,” Parker said. “It’s not that a preparer can’t do it, but they’re very busy.”

Parker said his service has seen an increase in the number of people over the years, too.

“This year has been particularly busy because of a (new) tax break,” Parker said. “We’ve been really busy every week.”