Posted on 05/12/2005 7:46:54 PM PDT by Your Nightmare
Members of the President's Advisory Panel on Federal Tax Reform on May 11 expressed concerns over the FairTax national retail sales tax, a plan that has emerged as an alternative with a major grass-roots push.
Panel chair Connie Mack, vice chair John B. Breaux, and other members worried the plan would be difficult to enforce, would be regressive, and would require a high rate in order to take in enough money to fund the government.
Breaux raised concerns that the proposed 23 percent (tax-inclusive) rate would not be sufficient to raise the revenue necessary to fund the government. The Joint Committee on Taxation estimated that it would take as much as a 57 percent (tax-exclusive) rate to be revenue-neutral. Further, Breaux said he thought exemptions that would be carved out to make the sales tax progressive would also complicate it.
Mack, who raised concerns similar to his fellow panelists', said he was "intrigued" by the plan. "But if it's such a great idea, why haven't other political entities around the world pursued it?" he asked.
Americans for Fair Taxation Executive Director Tom Wright emphasized that the plan emerged after "thorough academic research" and "thorough polling" The strong grass-roots push has resulted in some of the group's 600,000 members appearing at each of the panel's hearings and has inspired a large comment-writing campaign to the panel in support of the plan.
Sales tax advocates were among the 20 witnesses who gathered before the panel for a full day of testimony on tax reform proposals. Although the group has held several other hearings in Washington and around the country, the May 11 meeting was its first hearing on specific reform plans since Bush appointed the panel in January. The panel has been charged with identifying tax reform proposals that are progressive, encourage charitable giving and home purchases, and are revenue-neutral. The proposals are due by July 31.
Among the tax replacement and reform plans presented to the panel were the value added tax, consumption-based tax, and the flat tax, as well as proposals that would use the current income tax as the foundation.
Witnesses generally claimed that theirs was the fairest, simplest, most flexible, most transparent revenue-neutral proposal that would improve economic growth and savings while meeting the president's criteria of encouraging charitable giving and home buying. Witnesses presenting consumption-based plans praised their overhaul as taking millions of low-income taxpayers off the rolls, being easy to transition to on a worldwide basis, and including safeguards to prevent new loopholes that would result in increased complexity down the road.
Tax reform panel members, who agree the current tax system needs to be fixed, grilled witnesses without revealing whether they will ultimately endorse a consumption- or income-based tax or a different mixture of the two.
Can you actually give an example?I see you have problems calculating percentages.
And you don't, so educate me...Show an example of your 23% sales tax.
The Fairtax is the only viable alternative.
That would be one opinion.
Also note that since no one answered between 10:45-11:45 PM (east coast time), we must be avoiding the thread. Which is just as credible an assertion is is usally made by the status quo folks.
Some people, who sell "Pay No INcome Tax" kits for $49 will be out of a racket. Others (who currently evade taxes) will actually have to begin paying taxes. Oddly, it's those folks who say that enforcement will be a problem.... LOL.
Of course those people are more interested in themselves that the Country.
What's silent is your pings to fair tax supporters.
The silence is still deafening..
Did you have anything of substance or are you hoping someone else will do it for you?
Over 200 views on this thread and none of them are fairtax supporters?....right.
So where did you pull "23%" from? I know where that figure comes from and it's not from Fairtax. Do you know it comes from?
When did you stop selling illegal tax evasion kits?
Patience, hasty. Yours was only the third post.
Pay no attention to pro-FairTax responses on #4, #5, #7, #11, #12, #15, #18, #19, #22, and #23 prior to your post quoted above... that's 10 out of 23, with one or two "neutral" comments that couldn't be taken as pro- or anti- on their surface.
Some people, who sell "Pay No INcome Tax" kits for $49 will be out of a racket.
You pinged me for this?....What's your point?
Are you suggesting I sell a "Pay No Income Tax kit"?...I have no idea what a "Pay No Income Tax kit" is let alone how much one costs...did someone screw you on one?...You bought one didn't you.
Hefty on the protest there mate.
I hear a lot about how we need to repeal the 16th Amendment to solve the income tax "problem," and it was even a plank in Badnarik's campaign in the last election.
Problem is, though, that ain't good enough. The U.S. government had income taxes before the 16th Amendment was ratified. You need an amendment that BOTH repeals the 16th Amendment AND forbids the collection of any income taxes.
That aside, I'm not sure that I'm sold on a national sales tax. I think I'm just having problems supporting any kind of tax at all.
Query: were this to be passed, think Congress would continue to allow tax-free Internet purchases?
I'm pro-fair-tax, but that number *is* on the fairtax.org website.
From the FAQ section of the website:
Is the 23% FairTax higher or lower when compared to the income taxes people pay today? Most people are paying that much or more today – much of it is just hidden from view. The income tax bracket most people fall into is 15 percent, and all wage earners pay 7.65 percent in payroll taxes. That’s 23 percent right there, without taking into account the 7.65 percent employer matching! On top of that, you have to add in all of the hidden taxes embedded in the price of everything you buy, from goods (averaging 22 percent) to services (averaging 25 percent).
Effective tax rates vs. stated tax rates Because the 23-percent FairTax would not be imposed on necessities, an individual spending $28,808 would pay an effective tax rate of only 15.6 percent, not 23 percent. That same individual will pay 17.3 percent of his or her income to federal taxes under current law.
That's 10 "responses" by 3 individuals out of 23 posts and over 200 page views.
?
Then they must of have gotten it from House Speaker Dennis Haster a few years ago when he was being interviewed about a book he wrote on his life on H&C on Foxnews. Mr. Hannity asked Mr. Haster to throw out a theoritical number on a Nation Retail Sales Tax and Haster stated "23%".
Now it's not number of posts, it's who they're from. Wait just a sec and he'll change it again.
The fair tax rate is 30% tax exclusive - which is how sales taxes are customarily done - which is also 23% inclusive - the way income tax rates are always done... whether they're income, payroll, estate, gift, self -employment etc.
Actually, by post #23, my count is 6 distinct posters against the FairTax, and 6 in favor. But, we all know your issues with remedial mathematics.
Let's turn this around... in over 200 page views, an anti-FairTax article could only draw 5 anti-FairTax folks, not including the original poster of the article, who has yet to post any other reply on the thread?
lewislynn:The fairtax crowd silence is deafening on this thread.
LOL, I wasn't aware that people are held to a time clock on noticing posts.
However since you are apparently feeling lonely today, I am sure something can be done to alleviate your problem.
A Taxreform bump for you all.
If you would like to be added to this ping list let me know.
John Linder in the House(HR25) & Saxby Chambliss Senate(S25), offer a comprehensive bill to kill all income and SS/Medicare payroll taxes outright, and provide a IRS free replacement in the form of a retail sales tax:
H.R.25,S.25
A bill to promote freedom, fairness, and economic opportunity by repealing the income tax and other taxes, abolishing the Internal Revenue Service, and enacting a national retail sales tax to be administered primarily by the States.Refer for additional information:
Time after time...
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