Posted on 07/05/2007 3:17:45 PM PDT by indigo5
According to an IRS spokesperson in an article about anti-war tax resistance, 16.3% of Americans are in non-compliance with their taxes according to the Associated Press.That isn't fudging the numbers or coming up with creative tax deductions; it's simply evading taxes outright. While the story about the anti-war movement calling on people to not pay taxes to protest the war is interesting, the fact that a growing number of Americans are simply evading taxes is startling.
According to IRS estimates, that means there is $345 billion in uncollected taxes per year or roughly 2.6% of the national GDP. As a result of collection efforts, the IRS has generated over $48 billion of that amount in 2006 (or about 15%) according to CNN. These estimates do not include corporations using tax shelters (which "legally" protect them from taxes) or the rich using similar tactics. In 2006, the IRS audited about 1.3 million tax returns out of 130 million filed or an audit rate of about 1% according to an IRS source quoted by CNN. With over 16% overtly flouting the IRS, at best only 1% of those will even be challenged.
(Excerpt) Read more at associatedcontent.com ...
LOL. There is an amendment to the constitution specifically barring what you propose.
AMENDMENT [XXIV.] 16
SECTION. 1. The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or other election for President or Vice President, for electors for President or Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State by reason of failure to pay any poll tax or other tax.
1 in 6? Sounds like the illegals.
just the tip of an iceburg
I thought Robert Heinlein also had a good idea, only those who served in the armed forces deserved the right to vote (Starship Troopers).
Seriously, unless the people have a vested interest in the operation of their government, why should they go what is in the best interest of said government?
Someone in ancient Rome once said something to the effect that once the people can vote to redistribute wealth, the republic is lost.
Set the rules (whatever they are) and make it so that no elected body can change them unless agreed to by a super-majority (75%?) which would cover us in time of war.
The system, as it exists, actually would allow for a huge influx of foreigners to come to this country and, because of lax voting requirements, actually vote themselves the money of those already here. It would actually be a very effective way for a foreign power to take over and/or weaken the United States.
But such a thing couldn’t actually happen...
Quit paying them? Oh sure. If EVERYONE did it that would be fine but...we’d end up in jail!!!
So there are 45 to 50 million independent residents living in the shadows. We simply can’t deport, I mean arrest, all 50 million of these hard working people.
Is that what the other side is suggesting, that we have a federal gestapo go out and arrest them all?
(Bonus points for the first FReeper to guess which U. S. Senator I’m making fun of.)
This is news? But then again this is “news” written to deceive and distract.
I would have thought that more than 1 in 6 are non compliant in one way or another!
The problem with each state choosing a different method of taxation is that some states are small enough geographically for people to cheat.
Live in a state that relies on Sales Taxes but do all your shopping in the state next door that relies on Property Taxes or Income Taxes.
People near borders already do this over a measely 7% Sales Tax, and states are banding together to track down mailorder and internet sales taxes to recoup a relatively small tax rate. With a combined 30% Sales Tax necessary to satisfy both state and federal revenue needs, this evasion would be endemic.
You would need draconian enforcement and tracking with such large differences between states.
The FairTax, in contrast, requires no tracking because it is universal across all states and virtually all goods and services. The goods and services are flagged as taxable or not, regardless of who buys them. Only a deferment of tax for resale or as a business input needs to be tracked. Much less invasive and easier to administer.
Of course, the intent was to make sure that the southern states did not deny the sufferage of former slaves. There are always unintended consequences though. So instead of a new balance brought to the southern electorate we get a populace that is voting themselves benefits at the expense of the minority that actually pay an income tax.
That said, the graduated income tax is based on the amount of “extra” money people have. It would be nice to have some kind of measure of cost of living being factored into the income tax though. Someone who makes $60k is doing well in many parts of the U.S., but is just getting by on the coastal regions.
Where do slaves pay income tax?
Are those other 5 George Bush illegals ???
Underground economy starting with drug sales and prostitution.
I read some time ago that in Italy, because of the complicated and oppressive tax system, over 30% of the Italian economy is “underground”.
Greedy Big Brother still hasn’t figured out that a less oppressive system and lower rates actually encourage more compliance, hence more revenue.
Excellent idea. It's a conflict of interest for people feeding at the public trough to vote.
Before enacting the Fair Tax, I think we would need to amend the constitution to forbid income taxation at any and all levels of government, from the town to the UN.
By paying income tax we are working for our government.
The quantity of such under the table business is difficult by definition to ascertain. If the IRS claims that one out of six people has at some time in their life gotten income dealt under the table, that might be believable. But that many people doing it all the time? Pulling my leg.
According to the IRS, most tax evasion occurs where there is no third party reporting and can be as high as 50% among that group.
While some see the national retail sales tax as the answer, estimates of tax evaision for that scheme are as high as 1 in 5.
>>If our politicians can pick and choose which laws they are going to abide by and which ones they will ignore, why can’t citizens do the same thing?
Show me the law that says that income from individuals can be taxed... You can’t. There isn’t one.
Show me the law that says that income from individuals can be taxed... You can’t. There isn’t one.
and it begins... I am suprised it lasted this long.
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