CLEVELAND — An IRS agent testified Wednesday at U.S. Rep. James A. Traficant Jr.'s bribery trial that the congressman failed to report $78,000 in gifts and kickbacks.

        Bruce Hess said the income included boat repairs provided by a Youngstown businessman, cash contributions from other businessmen and $32,500 in kickbacks from Allen Sinclair, one of Mr. Traficant's former staff members.

        Mr. Traficant, 60, is on trial in U.S. District Court on 10 charges, including filing false tax returns. He is accused of getting gifts and free labor from businessmen for his political help and taking cash kickbacks and free labor from staff members.

        Mr. Hess said Mr. Traficant underreported his income by $33,000 in 1998 and $45,000 in 1999.

        Under cross-examination by Mr. Traficant, Mr. Hess acknowledged he compiled his accounting from the testimony of other witnesses and did not independently verify that Mr. Traficant received the gifts.

        Mr. Hess also said Mr. Traficant's tax returns going back to 1993 had been labeled as being part of a criminal investigation. Mr. Traficant suggested that is proof the government has been trying to convict him since he was acquitted of taking bribes from mobsters in 1983.

        But Mr. Hess said he has no knowledge of any longstanding investigation of Mr. Traficant.

        Mr. Traficant is defending himself, although he's not a lawyer.

        The nine-term Democrat from northeast Ohio faces up to 63 years in prison if convicted of all charges. However, he probably would receive a much shorter sentence because of federal sentencing guidelines.

        Mr. Sinclair testified at the beginning of the trial that he gave Mr. Traficant $2,500 in cash from each of his congressional payroll checks.

        Businessmen John J. Cafaro, James Sabatine and Albert Lange have testified over the past few weeks that they gave Mr. Traficant things of value, including cash, help at his horse farm and repairs on his boat.

        Mr. Hess said Mr. Traficant should have declared those items as income.

        Mr. Traficant has not said whom he plans to call as witnesses. He has subpoenaed Richard Detore, his co-defendant, who is accused of arranging the payments and boat repairs from Mr. Lange and Mr. Cafaro to Mr. Traficant. Mr. Lange and Mr. Detore both worked for Mr. Cafaro's U.S. Aerospace Group, and Mr. Traficant lobbied federal regulators to approve the company's runway lighting technology.

        Mr. Detore's attorney argued his client should not have to testify because he is a co-defendant. But U.S. District Judge Lesley Wells said that, to avoid testifying, Mr. Detore must appear in court and invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

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