NRST is voluntary in that you can choose not to spend your money and choose to save it instead. The current Income Tax structed not only prevents this, but punishes you for trying to save your money.
By the way, food, clothing and medicine are excluded from the NRST that is being preposed.
Not true. Every new item is taxed under the NRST, but the Family Consumption Allowance (as mentioned above), allows people to decide for themselves what their necessities are.
If you are referring to the FairTax, this is not the case. That has been discussed with other NRST plans, however under the FairTax there is no special exemption for anything. The reason being is that it would lead to complication of the tax system with everyone lobbying for their product to be tax free.
In order to keep the rules simple, and avoid overtaxing the poor, they give every legal resident a prebate each month equal to the amount one would pay if one lived at the poverty level. So everyone has a prebate on spending up to the poverty level, regardless of what they spend it on.
Well, with the Income Tax, you can choose whether to work or not. I'd say they are about equal in "voluntariness".
"By the way, food, clothing and medicine are excluded from the NRST that is being preposed."
I don't think so, and I don't think we want to give lobbying power to interest groups. The prebate system is a fair short term solution, with my sincere hope that it will be abolished to bring the rate down. Only time will tell on that.
well, no.....you have to have shoes and clothes and school supplies for your kids,period.....
I don't know whether the NRST is a good idea or not, but please don't say that items needed for your children or for daily living are an OPTION and not NEED......
"NRST is voluntary in that you can choose not to spend your money and choose to save it instead."
Also, buying used items is another way to not pay taxes.