The Fair Tax Act of 1999- Is This For Real?

Though "death and taxes" is a popular saying to indicate the only two inevitable events in life, the first personal income tax was not enacted until the turbulent years of the Civil War. In 1893, it was deemed unconstitutional, but ironically, public sentiment kep the income tax a popular issue for Democrats to goad Republicans with in Congress. The lower classes mistakenly saw the income tax as a way to punish the rapidly expanding upper class. In fact, the Sixteenth Amendment that gave Congress the authorization to collect taxes from citizen's income resulted from a series of judgemental errors by both Democrats and Republicans.

Not only has the Sixteenth Amendment led to the creation of perhaps the most incompetent and insidious of governmental institutions, the Internal Revenue Service, but it also has sanctioned a blatant disregard for privacy rights. The word "audit" strikes fear in the hearts of many law-abiding taxpayers. Because the tax code is so dense and convoluted, even a person who intends to pay their tax can overlook an item, and with that comes monetary penalties galore. It is interesting to note that a recent investigation of the IRS revealed that it is the lower classes that get audited the most, not the upper classes who would have more motive and the monetary means to engage in tax evasion.

The idea of a national sales tax to replace the income tax is not a new idea. The National Retail Sales Tax plan has been in some form since 1990. In July of this year, a new bill was introduced by a bipartisan duo from the House of Representatives. The Fair Tax Act of 1999 would eliminate the income tax and the IRS, while establishing a federal sales tax that would work much like the state's sales tax work now. The federal sales tax rate would be the same for everyone(23%); the rich who typically consume more would end up paying more tax(theoretically), while those living below the poverty line would not pay any federal sales tax. All capital gains, corporate/small business, payroll(including Social Security and Medicare), and estate/gift taxes would also be eliminated. The Fair Tax bill also resolves to repeal the 16th Amendment, a monumental task. There would be a rebate system installed to refund sales tax paid on the basic necessities of life. As with most alternative plans to the current U.S. tax system, this all sounds good, but does the Fair Tax have a realistic shot of slaying the IRS beast?

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