European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 2, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Friday november 2, 1990 the stars and stripes a Page 5college Board alters sat Structure Boston apr College Board trustees on thursday announced drastic changes in the Scholastic aptitude test. The changes include the restoration of a written essay Section math problems that require students to calculate their own answers rather than select from multiple choices and increased emphasis on critical Reading. The trustees also voted to place a greater emphasis on Reading comprehension allow the use of calculators and increase the 2 /2-hour tests duration by 20 minutes. The revisions to the nations most widely used College Entrance exam Are designed in part to reduce students Reliance on test coaches officials said. College Board president Donald m. Stewart announced the changes at the boards annual business meeting in Boston. Stewart rebuffed suggestions the changes were made because of charges of cultural and gender Bias. The Board has repeatedly denied such allegations. A nothing could be further from the truth a Stewart said. A the sat has been in almost continual evolution. It has never been set in  some of the revisions recommended by a panel appointed by the Board will begin in 1991, although most wont be introduced until the Spring of 1994. The educational testing service of Princeton n.j., administers the exam. The College Board sponsors it. Fink wins Anchorage mayor race Anchorage Alaska a mayor Tom Fink apparently won his bid for reelection by a Little More than 1,000 votes but officials wednesday were examining 3,400 challenged or Absentee ballots. With All precincts counted Fink edged democratic challenger Rick Mystrom by 30,338 to 29,245 votes in tuesdays Runoff. Mystrom did not concede. The City has two weeks to finish examining the challenged ballots. City clerk Ruby Veldkamp said the margin was comfortable by Anchorage standards. A we consider 100 votes a landslide a she said noting that Fink beat Mystrom by just 29 votes in the oct. 2 three Way race that included former state legislator . A a red Boucher and forced the Runoff. Mystrom 46, is a former City assemblyman and former advertising executive who led the City a unsuccessful Winter olympics bid. Sands of time about 1 million College bound students take the sat every year. It was first Given to 8,040 students in 1926.the exam consists of two multiple Choice sections that test verbal and math skills. Each Section is Worth 800 Points. A perfect score is 1,600. The College Board began Field trials of possible sat revisions three years ago. In 1988 the Board created a committee of educators to evaluate results and rcom mend changes. In september Board trustees voted to postpone for a month a decision on whether to adopt the changes. Documents obtained by fairest a Cambridge based group critical of the sat suggest the trustees wanted More time to consider objections from educators and state legislators to a writing Section. A does no to this place recent immigrants and other language minority students at a competitive disadvantage if the test results were used As an integral component of admissions reviews a California Assembly speaker Willie l. Brownjr. Wrote to Stewart. Fairest and other critics have claimed that the sat tends to cover subjects that male and affluent test takers Are More Likely to be familiar with. Oft cited examples in the test include the question a dividends Are to stockholders As a with the answer being a royalties Are to writers a and the use of words such As a a regatta and  presidents Derek Bok of Harvard right David Gardner of the University of California Center and Robert Mccabe of Miami Dade Community College address a news conference following the announcement of the test changes. Some of America s Rich still Able to avoid income tax irs reports Washington a despite re heated government efforts to close loopholes some wealthy americans Are still Able to scrape up enough deductions to avoid paying any . Income tax the internal Revenue service said wednesday. Of 557,848 couples and individuals who reported income of $200,000 or More on returns filed in 1988, 472 with total income of $211 million paid no income tax. Two both unidentified even reported receiving unemployment compensation. Of the High income people who paid taxes about 9,300 paid less than 5 percent and 17,082 reduced their liability to less than 10 percent which is about the same rate paid by the average $35,000-a-year family. In its annual report on the tax liabilities of High income people the irs said 58 percent of those with income of $200,000 and up reported capital gains a profits from the Sale of investments a that averaged $384,476. By comparison salaries averaged $291,646. The study prepared principally by Allen h. Lerman of the Treasury de earthen to a office of tax analysis is ased on raw tax returns. Some of the non taxpayers could be moved onto the tax Rolls following irs audits. The report said 3,396 people with High incomes would have avoided Federal income taxes altogether had it not been for the alternative minimum tax. This Levy a a special net designed to ensure that High income people pay some tax regardless of How Many legitimate deductions they claim a Cost 35,223 top earners a total of $1 billion. However the reach of the minimum tax plunged from the previous year when the Levy took $4.8 billion from 158,903 High income filers. One of the provisions Congress wrote into a major deficit reduction Bill last week to raise the tax Burden on the Rich boosts the 21 percent rate of the minimum tax to 24 percent. Under orders from Congress the irs has been reporting the tax situation of upper income americans since 1977. In that year there were 53 returns reporting income of $200,000 or More and no taxes paid. Although changes in the Law were made to prevent the Well to do from shielding their income the figure grew to 613 on returns filed in 1986. On 1987 returns 595 claimed no tax liability. Through the years the number of tax free Rich people has been Only a tiny fraction of the wealthy. The most recent irs report showed the 557,848 taxpayers in the $200,000-and-Over group paid a total $72.7 billion an average of $130,276  the stars and stripes 40 years ago today. Nov. 2,1950 a two puerto Picans rushed Blair House president Truman a Washington Home with blazing automatic pistols in an apparent attempt to assassinate Truman to was not harmed.30 years ago today. Nov. 2,1960 a British prime minister Harold Macmillan told the House of commons hat Britain has agreed to provide a base for roving american nuclear submarines armed ith Polaris missiles.0 years ago today. Nov. 2,1970 a a fire in a Roadside dance Hall in St. Laurent Dupont France claimed 42 lives. The victims were trapped behind emergency exits that firemen said were pad locked and then nailed shut to keep out  0 years ago today. Nov. 2,1980 a the newspaper of Iran a most powerful islamic party called for the Elease of the 52 american hostages before the . Presidential election in order to win maximum concessions from Washington. Pm closures retooling prompt $2 billion loss Detroit apr general motors corp. Said wednesday it lost $2 billion in the third Quarter the biggest quarterly loss in automotive history largely due to the costs of retooling or closing inefficient factories. Even without the $2.1 billion in restructuring charges the worlds largest automaker made just $109 million during the Quarter far less than Wall Street forecasts. Industry analysts said Gmys accounting decision to deduct All of the costs from its third Quarter profits reflected the new management a decision to get a fresh Start following the retirement of chairman Roger Smith this summer. By taking the hit now pm a shows a serious commitment. To improve Domestic financial performance a said Douglas Laughlin of Bear Stearns amp co. In new York. Analysts had expected pm to take a charge for closing four Assembly plants and stopping production in at least three other Assembly plants. The size of the charge was More than Many expected but did no to Hurt Gmys Stock Price. Pm closed at $36.75, up 12 /2 cents on the new York Stock Exchange. Nonetheless Gmys earnings illustrated the Bleak picture of third Quarter results reported by the ailing Domestic Auto Industry. No. 2 Ford motor co. Has reported sharply lower earnings and no. 3 Chrysler lost $214 million