Posted on 11/05/2005 4:42:13 PM PST by ancient_geezer
Tax Changes on the Horizon
Buzz Timothy, BellaOnline's Accounting Editor
The President's Advisory Panel on Tax Reform finished its ten month investigation and research and has submitted its two best proposals to the US Treasury Department. The Treasury Department has said it will make its own tax reform proposals by the end of this year. Congress is scheduled to begin the tax reform debate next year.
But, what does tax reform really mean? Well, the tax reforms that have been put forth so far are at best disappointing, at worst they are nothing more than tweaks to an outdated, enormously confusing and cumbersome income tax system. The basis of both of the Panel's proposals is to reduce or eliminate deductions, thereby seemingly to simplify a cumbersome tax code.
However, if you look a bit deeper and really read the proposals, one finds that the panel has missed a great opportunity to come up with a tax system we could all live with. A tax system that is fair accross the board and fixes the one fundamental flaw in our current tax system, that is changing it from an income based to a use based system. Although one of the proposals is being touted as a Use or Consumption Based Tax, it is really not, it is truly an income based system being disguised.
The Tax Reform Panelists should have taken a blank piece of paper and devised a completely new, equitable and simple tax system. Instead they chose the politically easy choice of starting with the existing system and trying to change it, rather than fix it, when in fact, looking at their proposals, they have done niether they have only tweaked it.
What we need is a flat tax that is based on use. We already have this in place when in comes to gasoline, alcohol and cigarettes, why is it so difficult to think that this couldn't be expanded to all "used or consumed" items and completely do away with the income based system. As long as we live with an income based system individuals and businesses will always try to find ways to limit their incomes to hide from the overzealous tax code. However, if you change the focus of our tax system to a use based system then, "if you use it you pay". It really is that simple, and shouldn't that be our ultimate goal.
You are correct that the federal income tax is illegal. The only tax that the federal government is allowed to impose is 10% on interstate trade for the purpose of maintaining a common defense. The states, however, can tax on anything.
Rep. Bill Archer, Chairman, House Ways and Means Committee:
"A recent survey was done, in Europe and Japan, of the major corporations and I was astounded at the results. They were asked, 'If the US abolished its income tax and went to a sales tax, would that have any impact on your decisions?' Eighty percent of the corporations said they would build their factories in the United States of America. Twenty percent said they would move their international headquarters to the United States of America."
"...around longer than the Church of Scientology."
Is Mary Baker Eddy still around? lol
Thanks. Here is an alternate source for the same document.
I agree in principle, but what is to stop people from "hiding" consumption... aka, a new black market?
Just what would be new about such a black market?
If evaders hide income through cash transactions today, they can continue to hide sales the same way though at greater risk as the purchaser becomes a part of the evasion if such is taken advantage of in any meaningful manner. Where, in a self assessing income tax situation, it only takes one not reporting income to sucessfully evade, in a sales tax situation it takes customers gaining a benefit to attract them from legitimate venders, as well as the seller that fails to collect and remit a tax from his customer. That makes for much higher visibility of the activity and subsequent risks of exposure and prosecution of the seller. Under the system proposed it is the seller at liability for the remittence of taxes required to be collected from customers.
Those that are engaged in cash economy now to avoid income and SS/medicare taxes must and will take a substantive portion of their incomes and spend them at legitimate businesses under a sales tax system that does collect the NRST from them right along with every other person entering their establishments.
Don't mistake one bottomline fact, there will be tax evasion and fraud in any tax system no matter how onerous or tight it may considered to be. Tax evasion however will be no greater and for many reasons can be less under a retail sales tax system than an income tax system at the same marginal rates. In broadening the taxbase, reducing the maximum marginal rates impressed on the individual coupled with the increased risks taken by the sellers, less not more tax evasion behaviour tends to be promoted.
the internet isn't required for the public to have knowledge of state/federal programs/policies/laws. Those are all a matter of public record.
The masses received their view of the public record via a severely biased MSM, liberal college professors and screeching celebrities. Somehow, prior to the Internet you overlooked where the masses got their information.
You've done some homework! The smoke and mirrors used in the Infernal Revenue Code to coax Americans into participating in the Federal fraud is, to say the least, bordering on sorcery.
A sales tax is no better than a flat tax.
Remember, the changes Bush does will only be TEMPORARY. The democrats will eventually UNDO everything. It's only a matter of time.
By that kind of thinking, we will still be British colonials paying tea taxes to the King of England.
Sorry, I take what I can get in change, then make them fight to undo what has been accomplished.
Conditions are never just right. People who delay action until all factors are favorable do nothing.
--William Feather"The penalty good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men."
- Plato -
"The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt."
-John Philpot Curran, 1790.
Remember once one has sufficient backing by the electorate to make a change in the tax system as proposed under the NRST, going back to an income tax will be a politically dead issue for generations to come. For the institutions that work to maintain status quo then work in favor of maintaining the tax reform accomplished and against those that would return to the systems that were replaced.
There, I fixed it.
Since when did the public have to rely on the MSM? Are people completely incapable of researching what Congress is doing? Again, the media is not required to do one's duty as a citizen. I think people choose to rely on the MSM to relieve themselves of their responsibility as citizens. Lambs leading themselves willfully to the slaughter.
Thanks you're affirming, as is everybody on this forum that there is an alternative to the MSM and people are finally waking up. It was just a matter of time until convenient communication met frustration of dinosaur media. Internet, a product of science and business. As it should be, lifting up the masses.
Which is why the world is using the completely evil United Nations to try and take over the Internet. Just watch watch the Democrats do when they next take power (which they will someday, maybe sooner than we can handle).
The pendulum has changed direction. Away from irrationality and dishonesty. Momentum is gained as it rolls over democrats on it's way to rolling over republicans. The accrued momentum favors science and business obsolescing politics and religion. History shows that at worst science and business have been usurped by political and religious leaders to kill innocents and destroy values. Otherwise business and science would have done nothing but benefit the value creators, consumers and society. And resolving trivial problems such as buggy-whip makers rendered obsolete.
Although one of the proposals is being touted as a
Use or Consumption Based Tax,flat tax that is based on use, it is really not, it is truly a federal sales tax being disguised.There, I fixed it.
Lets see the "Flat Tax" which is a tax on employee's wages and coroporate profits is "truly a federal sales tax being disguised."
Yep you fixed it alright, for the "Flat Tax" is being touted as a federal sales tax being disguised.
A type of VAT, as a matter of fact, as the originators of the "Flat Tax" and others describe it.
The Flat Tax; Chapter 3, by Robert Hall and Alvin Rabushka
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FLAT TAX, VAT TAX, ANYTHING BUT THAT TAX; Duke Law Magazine, Spring 96:
For years now, the American government has established state religion. No, it's not evangelical Christianity. It's Scientology.
Because of a 1993 secret deal with the Internal Revenue Service, members of L. Ron Hubbard's Church of Scientology are allowed to write off costly Scientologist "auditing" and "training" services as charitable gift deductions. Anyone who sends their child to religious school, however, is banned from writing off tuition.
What exactly are Scientologists writing off? Thousands of dollars worth of pure baloney. As authors Andrew Breitbart and Mark Ebner detail in their fascinating book, "Hollywood, Interrupted," Scientology itself is a load of psychedelic babble, and an expensive load at that. It costs over $300,000 to reach the top levels of this cult. "Auditing" -- the service that the IRS allows Scientologists to write off -- is a method of purging "thetans."
Spearheaded by the "church" of Scientology, the cynicaly misnamed "Fair Tax" [John Linder in the House(HR25) & Saxby Chambliss Senate(S25)] is actually a fraudulent proposal intended to sidetrack and derail true efforts for tax reform.
It is too bad that real tax reform will NEVER happen! There are way too many laywers it the middle of this for our own sake. We may need another revolt, to fix things back to the way they should be!
So you're applying guilt by association. Thanks for clearing that up.
There are way too many laywers it the middle of this for our own sake. We may need another revolt, to fix things back to the way they should be!
Hmmm, if'n we strung all them lawyers up on the nearest lampposts, would we still have a quorum in Congress to enact legislation to fix things up?
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