Would you vote for the flat tax?

**forHISglory** · 01-30-2008, 05:23 PM

I see a lot of you have finished your taxes, but sadly I'm not there yet. I was pondering the flat tax of 15%. Basically, it means that with every pay check, 15% is taken out and that's it as far as Federal taxes. You wouldn't have to file, fill out paperwork or anything. There would be no exemptions, so it doesn't matter what size your family is, what your age is, etc.

I can see that it would make life easier in many ways, and that it would throw a lot of IRS people out of a job.

Would it work for you? What do you see as the advantages for yourself and for your nation? What about disadvantages? What harms might happen? Are there any pilot programs on the state or local level where this has worked?

I was listening to an interview with Huckabee this afternoon, and he felt that taxes should stay low. He said that some told him that the American people wanted more social programs and higher taxes to pay for them. Huckabee said that those who wanted to pay higher taxes could just put the extra money/check into an envelope and mail it to the government!!!!!

Anyway, what are your thoughts about a flat tax?

**fuzzybunny** · 01-30-2008, 05:44 PM

I would vote for a reasonable flat take. 15% would be fine but I have heard some politicians throwing out numbers as high as 30% and that would be way to much. I would also hope that it would be set up in such a way that there were no loopholes, everyone pays, period. I think a clause for the exemption of non-junk food food items and medical services would be a good idea, however. Food and medical care are rights and not made more difficult to obtain.

It seems a fair solution for everyone and if the loopholes/exemptions were kept nil or next to non-existent I think we would have more money than we do now for social programs etc. since it would be harder for big corporations to weasel out of paying with their expensive accountants.

Finally, I like it because, being a frugal person I would be trading and buying second hand and pay much less tax.

Christine

**dcompton** · 01-30-2008, 05:45 PM

The simplicity is appealing and I would probably come out ahead. But... to me it seems very deceptively simple, because not all income comes through a paycheck, so surely some, many in fact, would still have to file.

I would be concerned too about how it impact impact the poor. Wouldn't that be a higher tax than some of them are paying now? But I'm certainly no expert and this may all be way off base.

**fuzzybunny** · 01-30-2008, 05:50 PM

hmmm... I always thought a flat sales tax. You buy it, you are taxed. That seems like less hassle and would allow for piece of the pie from all those who like to do illegal things since they will spend the illegal money they make.

I don't know about an income tax. I would still pay less but that seems like a placating action for the masses as those corporations and very very rich people who slip out of paying (we have a lot of them in Oregon) would still be able to manipulate the system and not be paying as much as those of us without teams of accountants.

Christine

**dcompton** · 01-30-2008, 05:50 PM

Fuzzybunny had posted before I got my reply up. This sounds like two different things. I rather like the idea of a "consumer tax" which sounds like what fuzzybunny was talking about. But forhisglory's post sounded more like the wage based taxes we have now.

See? Even the questions confuse me. My brain cells are still numb from reading the instructions to a form an IRS agent told me to look at yesterday. (The instructions, after columns of tiny print, said "you may be able to" -- I wanted a "yes" or a "no." What good is a "may"?)

**guest002** · 01-30-2008, 05:55 PM

I can support a flat sales tax. 15% on everything you buy. That way income and investing & savings are not taxed.

It might make a lot of Americans reconsider what they are wasting, I mean spending, their money on.

**StaceyS** · 01-30-2008, 06:00 PM

I would agree with the 15% flat sales tax. But I can't imagine those people earning minimum wage, that currently don't earn enough to pay federal tax, would benefit from this.

**sdrjeolsen** · 01-30-2008, 06:08 PM

I would be for it, but I think eventually they would begin to add things on and then we'd be right back where we are now, but worse. Ex. when they proposed the seatbelt law, there was so much controvery it wouldn't pass till they stipulated that "no motorist will ever be pulled over for not wearing a seatbelt, only ticketed if they are first pulled over for something else" then years later when its widely accepted, now they can pull over for seatbelt non-use alone.

Its just the way thing go. I can't see them leaving it alone if it ever did pass.

**Michelle68** · 01-30-2008, 07:46 PM

I just read an article about this yesterday. Basically, what it said was that a national flat sales tax ("Fair Tax" ) would actually run more like 30%. The article also pointed out that the IRS would not be abolished-- the agency would simply move into a mode enforcing of sales-tax compliance instaed of income-tax compliance. Here's the article's link (which lists pros and cons) from the MSN Money site: http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com...eallyFair.aspx

--Michelle

**forHISglory** · 01-30-2008, 10:02 PM

When I posted, I was thinking along the lines of a flat income tax, but the flat sales tax also has merits worth discussing.

I also thought more about the flat tax: It would also have to take the first 15% of stocks/bonds/mutual funds income, of interest income, of gambling proceeds........ what else am I missing here?

I don't know a lot about business. Would a flat tax also affect corporations?

Another thought is that states would continue to tax, so just having a flat Federal tax would not impact having to fill out a state form; that is, I still would have to do that.

I found the thought of not having to fill out any paperwork for the Fed to be appealing. It would be sort of a "pay as you go" tax.

On the flat sales tax, do you think food and meds would be exempt?

**momtoadiva** · 01-30-2008, 10:24 PM

I would just be happy if we all paid the same no matter your status, part of the problem is all the loopholes the wealthy get to take advantage of. For me I don't think it would be better I'm still a single mom meaning I get a pretty heafty refund. I count on that for large home repairs such as a new roof, etc.

Jo · 01-31-2008, 06:36 AM

Originally Posted by momtoadiva

part of the problem is all the loopholes the wealthy get to take advantage of. .

Here too...I'd love to see a flat SALES tax only, but there would be so many loopholes, and we'd be right back to the problem we have now. The rich find a way out, the poor don't pay...and the middle class funds it all. I'd also like to see medical care as a deduction, so I don't know how that would be worked into the system.
Even if we would then "barter" more, I still think the wealthy would come out ahead...they'd be bartering big ticket items that "should" be the things that are funding the needed programs.
What I also see as the core problem in this(at least what I hear from friends, family and patients) is that there is the underlying problem of welfare fraud. We are paying taxes, etc to fund programs for people who are undeserving, ablebodied, and buying things that we can't afford for ourselves. The general public is PI$$ED...perfectly willing to help those who are in dire straits, abused women who escape with the clothes on their back, etc....but the fraud is so "in your face", it's hard not to be resentful.