The Missed Taxation Of Lauryn Hill

JUNE 7--The singer Lauryn Hill was named today in a federal criminal information charging her with failing to file tax returns on $1.8 million in income earned over three years.

The 37-year-old performer, a former member of the Fugees, did not file tax returns in 2005, 2006, and 2007, according to the information filed in U.S. District Court in Newark, New Jersey.

The Grammy Award-winning singer’s primary source of income during those three years was “music and movie royalties” channeled to Hill through four corporations she owns.

The Department of Justice’s filing of a criminal information--as opposed to an indictment voted by a grand jury--usually indicates that a defendant has agreed to plead guilty to criminal charges.

Hill is scheduled for a June 29 appearance before a federal magistrate. If convicted of the misdemeanor charges, she faces a maximum of a year in prison (and a $100,000 fine) on each count.

Hill, who performed Sunday at Hot 97's "Summer Jam" concert at New Jersey's MetLife Stadium, won five Grammys for her 1998 album "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill," which has sold over eight million copies. (4 pages)