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case was submitted for decision in April 1995.
In Powell v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 1996-264, the Court
also held that the taxpayer was liable for the excise tax under
section 4980A. There the taxpayer, a teacher employed in the
Baltimore and Hagerstown Public Schools until his retirement in
1992, received a distribution (in the form of a transfer refund
from the Maryland State Teachers' Retirement System) in 1990.
We acknowledge that the argument advanced by petitioner in
the present case was not expressly addressed by the Court in
Rodoni v. Commissioner, supra; Montgomery v. Commissioner, supra;
or Powell v. Commissioner, supra. Nevertheless, we think that
the latter three cases are significant because the analysis
therein represents an application of the statutory language of
section 4980A that applies straightforwardly to the present case.
E. Legislative Intent
Petitioner also argues that Congress did not intend for the
excise tax under section 4980A to apply to amounts distributed
under a qualified employer plan to an individual who is not
retired. Here, however, we are reminded of the admonition of the
Supreme Court that "There is * * * no more persuasive evidence of
the purpose of a statute than the words by which the legislature
undertook to give expression to its wishes." United States v.
American Trucking Associations, 310 U.S. 534, 543 (1940). Thus,
where a statute appears to be clear on its face, unequivocal
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