When the FairTax bill passes, it would become effective 6 months later.
Nonetheless, If we let those bastard politicians have both a sales tax and an income tax we will end up with both. No NST until the Income Tax and the IRS is abolished.
Any other result is stupid.
Repealing the 16th amendment will never happen without a replacement tax in place. There is no way to operate government without funding it. Any other result is not just stupid, it's delusional.
Zon's reply in #106 is right on target. The only thing that I will add is that we already have both. We pay an income tax that is ripped from us before we get our money and we have the imbedded tax costs of every business and service.
The FT removes that component of prices and pre tax prices will fall.
The object is transparency. The cost of government will be visible.
Besides, the only thing preventing them for ADDING a sales tax on top of the income tax and the imbedded taxes is the risk of the anger of the voters.
After the FT is in place, the IRS infrastructure will be gone making the re-imposition of an income very difficult from both and operational standpoint as well as making the voters angry. Once you start getting your entire paycheck, will you let it be stolen from you again?
Your question is a legitmate one, but the answer to it, and every other question, is the same as we were told 200 plus years ago -- eternal vigilance. Over the last 90 years, we weren't as vigilant as we should have been or we wouldn't have gotten into this mess.