Well, here on the East Coast as I write this there's four minutes to spare to get the magic April 15 postmark on your taxes. Mine were done over last weekend, had to send them to Ohio for my ex's signature but she sent them in Tuesday night. So I'll get back my interest-free loan to the government in a few weeks and share it with her.
I've always seen taxes as a necessary evil. But when the tax code is millions upon millions of words, maybe more than even I at my long-winded blogging worst, something just has to be done. I filed a Form 1040 this year, as I have for the last several, along with Schedule A, Schedule D, Schedule D-1 (2 copies), and the moving expense form I don't recall the number of. So what I sent Linda for her signature (in one place, federal and state) was something like 10 sheets of paper in a FedEx envelope, between all the forms I did and the copy of the Ohio one I did online.
So as always at this time of year, taxes are first and foremost on a lot of opinion makers' lists of things to talk about. And I was reading where a bill was introduced in Congress to abolish the income tax and replace it with a national sales tax, with a rebate to those who make less money (because they spend more on necessities). The only problem I have with that is that somehow the income has to be reported then and we're back to income being a basis for taxation.
And another thing that I see lacking is the repeal of the 16th Amendment. We could go to this national sales tax, and Congress would still have the right to resurrect an income tax - say the Democrats got back in the majority, they could decide to "soak the rich" and the cycle would start anew. I cannot see 38 states voting for a new 16th Amendment if they abolish the old one. I know I'd fight damn hard for Maryland not to ratify it. Of course, they might be one of the 12 states who wouldn't repeal the 16th Amendment.
All I know is that something simpler than this has to be done. But there's another factor thrown in the pot as well - the thousands of people who make their living from the tax monster. Not just the "bastards at the IRS", but H & R Block, Jackson Hewitt, et.al. would fight it tooth and nail. Plus, don't forget anyone who has a significant deduction now. Realtors would hate having one big reason for home ownership vanish as the home mortgage deduction becomes obsolete. That also affects all the companies who promise easy money through the equity on your home.
The 401.k deduction I just started today becomes a bit more dicey, what happens to the tax advantage of it being deducted in pretax dollars? I suppose I could deal with that, since under the sales tax I get my "full" paycheck less that deduction and health/life insurance. It may make our CFO's job a lot easier, not to mention throwing business taxes out the window.
I guess the best solution is to tackle this like Canada did the metric system - throw our IRS-based headache of an income tax system out the window on a date certain and live with the consequences. I'm sure the government will make its money off the sales tax. And if not, it means maybe they'll live within some kind of means (yeah, right).
So right now I would have to say that I've finally changed my mind from the Armey/Forbes "flat tax" idea (which does have merit but is still an income tax rather than a consumption tax) to the theory that taxes should fall on those who buy items rather than those who make profits from the items. Sounds logical to me, so I know it'll never happen. Not with this bunch in government.
Late edit on last night's post: It figures, I send my letter to Governor Ehrlich this afternoon and who comes to throw out the first pitch at the Shorebirds game tonight but Lt. Governor Steele. Could have saved me the 37 cents if I'd known that!
