House Majority Leader Signs On To Linder’s Bill Abolishing the IRS

United States Congressman - John Linder ^ | April 3rd, 2003 | Congressman John Linder (R-Georgia)

[Remedy]

FAIRTAX BUILDS MOMENTUM
House Majority Leader Signs On To Linder’s Bill Abolishing the IRS Washington, D.C. - Congressman John Linder (R-Georgia) is pleased to announce that he has added more than 20 co-sponsors – including House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas) – to his innovative tax reform legislation, the FairTax. Linder’s bill, H.R. 25, would abolish all federal income taxes, death taxes, capital gains taxes, and payroll taxes, and replace them with a national retail sales tax.

"The momentum behind the FairTax continues to build, and Majority Leader DeLay’s co-sponsorship is just the latest signal that support for the FairTax is growing," said Linder. "The bill now has 21 co-sponsors – more than any other fundamental tax reform legislation in the House – and they represent a bipartisan coalition of members from across the nation. Not only do my colleagues recognize the harm done to the American people by the overly intrusive and burdensome income tax code, their constituents recognize it every April 15th," continued Linder.

The addition of DeLay and 14 other co-sponsors in the last month alone is just the latest positive news regarding the FairTax. In February, the annual report of the White House Council of Economic Advisers stated for the first time that elimination and replacement of the complex and arcane federal income tax code with a consumption tax would increase efficiency in the tax system and promote investment and growth. The report stated that a consumption tax, like the FairTax, could very well be the most suitable replacement for the income tax system.

The FairTax

I am the primary sponsor of The FairTax. The FairTax is one of the most exciting proposals to ever reach the American people. It offers long-needed tax relief – in the form of lower prices, nearly nonexistent compliance costs, and the ability to choose how much to spend in taxes – to all Americans, while eliminating the income tax and allowing Americans to keep 100 percent of their paycheck. The FairTax will dramatically reduce prices, protect and ensure funding of Social Security and Medicare, empower the low-income earners, and put choice and control back into the hands of every American. All the crucial elements are in place: a public that is eager and ready for a fairer tax system, and a Congress willing to seriously consider genuine tax reform. To be competitive in the next century and to renew the American dream, we must change the way we fund our national government.

The FairTax Act:

• Repeals the all corporate and individual income taxes, payroll taxes, self-employment taxes, capital gains taxes, estate taxes and gift taxes.

• Imposes a revenue-neutral national sales tax on all new goods and services at the point of final purchase for consumption. Business-to-business transactions and used products (which have already been taxed) are not subject to the sales tax.

• Rebates the sales tax on all spending up to the poverty level.

Results of the FairTax:

• Dramatically reduce the costs of goods and services by 20 to 30 percent.

• Allow you to keep 100 percent of your paycheck, pension, and Social Security payments.

• Gross Domestic Product will increase by almost 10.5 percent in the first year after enactment.

• Compliance costs would decrease by 90 percent.

• Real investment would initially increase by 76 percent relative to the investment that would be made under present law. While this increase would gradually decline, it remains 15 percent higher than under the existing tax structure.

• Exports would increase by 26 percent initially and would remain more than 13 percent above the level under the current tax system.

• Real wages will increase.

• Increases incentives to work by as much as 20 percent in many households, leading to higher economic growth and efficiency.

• Interest rates will fall 25 to 35 percent.

If you would like view the new FairTax PowerPoint slide presentation or consider the significant benefits of the FairTax in greater detail, please take some time to visit the "FairTax" section of my website located in the "Resource Headquarters."

Which of the following tax systems do you prefer?

Current system is fine.:4%

IRS and a flat income tax:13%

A national sales tax.: 78%

None of the above.: 4%

760 total votes

[The PeteMan]

I agree that the IRS sucks but I also agree that if we abolish all the tax shelters and deductions that unless there is a PERMANENT TAX CAP imposed that all Congress will do is raise taxes each year and then we will be left grabbing our ankles with no recourse.

[Remedy]

AMERICAN FARM BUREAU FEDERATION
                                  225 Touhy Avenue * Park Ridge * Illinois * 60068 * (847)685-8600 * FAX (847)685-8896
     600 MARYLAND AVENUE, S.W. * SUITE 800 * WASHINGTON, D.C. * 20024 * (202)484-3600 * FAX (202)484-3604
                                                                                                                                                                 Internet: http://www.fb.com

August 31, 2001

The Honorable John Linder
U.S. House of Representatives
1727 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Representative Linder:

American farmers and ranchers support fundamental tax reform. They have become increasingly frustrated with the current tax system and disheartned that attempts to improve it only make it more complex.

Your national sales tax plan, H.R. 2525, the Fair Tax Act of 2001, is supported by Farm Bureau. The plan addresses many problems of the current tax system by eliminating the individual and corporate income taxes, capital gains tax, estate tax and payroll taxes. These changes would have a positive impact on day-to-day farm and ranch management and the transfer of farms and ranches from one generation to the next.

The current tax system forces farmers and ranchers to consider the tax consequences of each input purchase, commodity sale, capital asset purchase or capital asset sale. Tax planning has become a part of everyday decision-making. Farmers and racnhers should be making business decisions based on economics, not on tax consequences.

After a lifetime of hard work and paying taxes, farmers and ranchers face double taxation through capital gains taxes at retirement and estate taxes at death. If they sell land, livestock or other assets at retirement, they find the federal government ready to take a share as capital gains taxes. These taxes often discourage retirees from reallocating assets to a more appropriate mix for their retirement years and younger producers lose the opportunity to purchase the assets that they need to start or expand farm and ranch businesses.

Planning for the transfer of assets at death has become a time consuming and costly activity. Many family farms are multi-generation family farms. Transferring farms and ranches from one generation to the next without huge estate taxes is critical to the financial success of these operations. Some farms are lost when death taxes force farmers and ranchers to sell part or all of their business to secure enough cash to pay death taxes.

These and other problems would be eliminated with passage of H.R. 2525, the Fair Tax Act of 2001. We stand ready to assist you in advancing this legislation.

Sincerely,

Bob Stallman
Bob Stallman
President

[Remedy]

ping

[Ford Fairlane]

Cool

[christie]

Is the Grange on board?

[Remedy]

Linder Receives "Thomas Jefferson Award"(01/01/2003) Food Distributors International (FDI) has given John Linder "The Thomas Jefferson Award" for his consistent support of free market principles and Jeffersonian ideals. The Thomas Jefferson Awards were presented to members of the House of Representatives who have voted consistently in support of efforts to move power beyond Washington and back into the hands of the American people, specifically in areas such as tax and budget matters, and labor and regulatory policy. The Thomas Jefferson Award is given to those members of Congress whose voting records demonstrate a commitment to sound fiscal policy, minimal government regulation and other free market principles. The award program was inspired by the philosophies and writings of Thomas Jefferson, who in his first inaugural address noted, "A wise and frugal government…which shall leave men otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned. This is the sum of good government."

[farmfriend]

Good question. I would have to aske the National Legislative Director. I'll let you know.

[keyd]

It will be tough for Congress to raise taxes once this goes into place.

You walk into a Walmart and buy 100 dollars worth of stuff.
You get a reciept showing what you bought.
On the bottom line of the reciept it shows how much you just paid in taxes.

This is way better than the current system of taxes taken from your check before you even see/touch your money.

It is a lot harder to back a tax hike under FairTax because all people (employed or not) are MUCH more aware of what they pay in taxes for obvious reasons.

[Celtjew Libertarian]

I think this would be an improvement on the current state of things, but there would still be too many problems, IMO. Either we end up taxing things that, IMO, should not be taxed (food, medicine, some baseline level of shelter) or we end up creating a whole new set of complex, too easily manipulated government regulations (OK, should Hostess Twinkies be untaxed as food or taxed as junk food?)

Here's what I would like to see:

Line 1.  Income (Wages, tips, dividends, interest, inheritance, etc.).

Line 2.  Subtract $25,000 from Line 1.

Line 3.  If Line 2 < 0, you pay no taxes.

Line 4.  If Line 2 > 0, multiply line 2 by 0.15.  This is your total taxes.

The only numbers that could be manipulated would be the deduction in line 2 and the tax rate in line 4. There might also be a debate about what was included in line 1 (inheritance, for example). But it would keep things to the basics.

[farmfriend]

Lisa, Do you know if the Grange is on board with this? I've email LeRoy so should hear back Mon.

[Willie Green]

As compared to the constant annual assessment on the fictitious entity known as "income".

If "income" were a "fictitious entity", you wouldn't be squawking like a masterbating monkey about it being taxed.

INCOME: Revenue earned or received by households that can be used for consumption or saving. For the aggregate economy, earned income is termed national income, while received income is termed personal income. The key is that income for the aggregate economy is generated in the production of goods and services.

[rolling_stone]

There is nothing to stop Congress from raising our rates now is there? Special Interest groups get their deductions and Congress is bought and paid for with contributions by groups wanting these special deductions. Eliminating special tax interests would go a long way to cleaning up congress...IMO

Getting rid of all the hidden taxes and showing one number will help the public be aware of what government actually costs and force Congress to be more productive. We can cut our consumption to limit the taxes under NRST...

http://www.salestax.org/main.htm


It is a signal advantage of taxes on articles of consumption, that they contain in their own nature a security against excess. They prescribe their own limit; which cannot be exceeded without defeating the end proposed, that is, an extension of the revenue. When applied to this object, the saying is as just as it is witty, that, "in political arithmetic, two and two do not always make four." If duties are too high, they lessen the consumption; the collection is eluded; and the product to the treasury is not so great as when they are confined within proper and moderate bounds. This forms a complete barrier against any material oppression of the citizens by taxes of this class, and is itself a natural limitation of the power of imposing them." - Alexander Hamilton in Federalist No. 21, December 12, 1787



http://nesara.org/faqs/nrst.htm



The percentage amount of the tax. We agree that the initial amount of any sales tax might be high, but this works to our advantage in the long run as people finally are forced to face the actual cost of government. Using visible consumption taxes that people see every day in place of hidden taxes will generate pressure on Congress to remain within constitutional limits

[Willie Green]

Linder Receives "Thomas Jefferson Award"

And Yasser Arafat won the Nobel Peace Prize in '94...

So what's your point?

[Libertarianize the GOP]

Thanks for the ping
http://www.freerepublic.com/perl/bump-list

[Remedy]

If I had the choice between your plan and Linder's, I would vote for yours. Your plan, by simplicity, should greatly reduce/eliminate the IRS.

Linder does have support from several tax reform organizations:

Americans for Tax Reform Names Linder "Hero of the Taxpayer"(01/01/2003) Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) has named Linder a "Hero of the Taxpayer." ATR began issuing "Hero of the Taxpayer" and "Enemy of the Taxpayer" awards in 1995 as a way to notify American voters of the positions made by their elected officials on issues important to taxpayers. ATR believes that the government’s power to control one’s life derives from its power to tax, and therefore the group opposes all tax increases. In order to receive this award, members of Congress must vote and represent the interests of American taxpayers and ensure that hard-working Americans do not have to contribute even more of their incomes to wasteful government spending.

Linder Named "Hero of Taxpayer" by Citizens Against Government Waste(01/01/2003) Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) has named John Linder "The Hero of Taxpayer" in its Congressional ratings. Citizens Against Government Waste is dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in the federal government. In its Congressional Ratings, CAGW rated votes in the House of Representatives, including votes on eliminating the marriage penalty and estate taxes, giving the President trade promotion authority in order to expand the American economy and jobs, and on whether to implement a Constitutional Amendment to require a 2/3 majority to raise taxes. John received an average score of 93 percent in agreement with CAGW. Overall, the average score for Republicans in the House was 76 percent, and Democrats averaged 18 percent.

National Tax Limitation Committee Presents Linder with "Tax Fighter Award"(01/01/2003) The National Tax Limitation Committee (NTLC) has awarded John Linder with its "Tax Fighter Award," given to Members of Congress whose philosophy reflects support for private property rights, federalism, less government regulation, and a reduced size of the federal government. The National Tax Limitation Committee was organized in 1975 to seek constitutional and other limits on taxes, spending and deficits at the federal, state and local levels of government. In selecting votes, NTLC placed special emphasis on tax, budget and appropriation measures that would have a major impact on long-term taxing and spending programs of the government. Every action considered for this rating was weighed and tallied to present an accurate "fiscal responsibility" score for each Member.

[Remedy]

Points all made in post#1

[nanny]

I don't like the IRS either - but just don't believe any politician is going to try to implement anything that will actually help the nation and the people. I always look for the money trail - what campaign debts are their looking to pay off - or is this just a big PR scam they know will go nowhere.

I didn't like this aspect of it Rebates the sales tax on all spending up to the poverty level. This makes worse the situation of hardworking taxpayers paying for others to get a free ride.

As for nothing used being taxed - just don't believe that will happen. We pay sales taxes in Texas and any other state in which I have shopped for antiques. Used merchandise is a big market - autos, antiques, houses, most anything that is not consumed is available used. What if this gives rise to a much larger used sector that is paying no taxes - I just don't believe they will let that go. It could bring down the purchases on new items and up the purchase of used items. This would not be really good for the economy.

It's a nice pipe dream and would be great as stated for people like my husband and I. We are at the stage in life, we don't get caught up in buying new gadgets and geegaws or status symbols.

I think it might work for a while and then they will do like Texas does sometimes - announce they did not have to raise taxes on us this year. But you find out many more things are subject to sales tax than last year.

[Willie Green]

Points all made in post#1

(((yawn)))

"The prohibiting duties we lay on all articles of foreign manufacture which prudence requires us to establish at home, with the patriotic determination of every good citizen to use no foreign article which can be made within ourselves without regard to difference of price, secures us against a relapse into foreign dependency."

--Thomas Jefferson to Jean Baptiste Say, 1815.

"I have come to a resolution myself as I hope every good citizen will, never again to purchase any article of foreign manufacture which can be had of American make, be the difference of price what it may."

--Thomas Jefferson to B. S. Barton, 1815. ME 19:223

"We are infinitely better off without treaties of commerce with any nation."

--Thomas Jefferson to James Madison, 1815.

[rolling_stone]

It could bring down the purchases on new items and up the purchase of used items. This would not be really good for the economy.

I think it will push for quality items that can be fixed in the USA instead of bought and discarded...Home grown Service Industries will flourish instead of importers and we will be less dependent on cheap imported goods that don't last....

[tangerine]

You're quite right. It is a productivity tax. And you are correct to point out that many "used" items increase in value over time - antiques and real estate to name a few.

What is a stock transaction, if not the purchase of a used item, unless it's a new issue?

And to exempt business to business transactions?? What's to keep every household from becoming a business?

Much as I hate the current tax code, I can see a massive shift to buying used and to all new purchases being strictly business to business deals, all services and consumables included.