During the 912dc March on Washington we saw signs promoting FairTax and people handed out literature regarding FairTax. At local and national events, demonstrations, protests I have personally witnessed the FairTax people being active. That is just my observation and imo, just because they have organized themselves to be more visible, their presence at Tea Party meetings, rallies and protests doesn’t equate to FairTax being a better option than Flat Tax or any other of the concepts being floated out there.
I am one that wants information. So when I am constantly handed FairTax info, I become suspicious and ask ‘What is this FairTax stuff and why is it being shoved in my hand and held in front of my face. What’s the deal with this?” I know that any pro FairTax promo handout is not going to give me the real scoop on the downside of that crusade.
With that in mind, I located an analysis and have shared it below. Mind you, I am still researching for information and I urge others to dig deeper also. Since FairTax and Flat tax are the two positions that have donned boxing gloves, I will share what I have found regarding those two positions. Please feel free to add your two cents.
(Read the entire article below the cut)
The Flat Tax Is Not Flat and the FairTax Is Not Fair
This talk was given at the 2009 Austrian Scholars Conference at the Mises Institute. It is available as an MP3 audio download.
Our current income tax system, inaugurated in 1913 with the adoption of the 16th Amendment, began with a 1 percent tax on taxable income above $3,000 ($4,000 for married couples). A series of surcharges of up to 6 percent were applied to higher incomes, with the maximum rate being 7 percent on taxable income over $500,000. Less than 0.5 percent of the population ended up paying income tax.
From these humble beginnings, the income tax soon blossomed, thanks to World War I, into a tax with a minimum rate that doubled and a maximum rate that reached 77 percent on income of over $1 million. The rates did not fall significantly until 1925. In the middle of the Great Depression, the top rate rose to 79 percent. During World War II, the tax rate for those in the highest income bracket reached an astounding 94 percent. The Internal Revenue Code of 1954 resulted in 24 brackets with rates ranging from 20 to 91 percent. The top rate remained at 91 percent until 1964. Under the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981 and the Tax Reform Act of 1986, the top marginal tax rates were lowered to 50 and 28 percent respectively. The Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 established the current tax brackets of 10, 15, 25, 28, 33, and 35 percent.
There is no question that the federal tax code is too long, too complex, too intrusive, too confusing, and too inequitable. The members of Congress responsible for the tax code would not even disagree. As a consequence, cries for tax reform can always be heard from every quarter – and especially around election time. There are even organizations dedicated solely to tax reform, such as Americans for Tax Reform, Reform AMT, Citizens for Tax Justice, and Americans for Fair Taxation. Since the federal government is always looking to increase its revenue while at the same time making Americans feel better about paying their taxes, it has also climbed aboard the tax-reform bus, most recently in 2005 when President Bush formed the President’s Advisory Panel on Federal Tax Reform.
