Tuesday, August 03, 2004

A Bold Agenda on Taxes
House Speaker Denny Hastert says its time to end the cumbersome tax system we all know and hate. This could become a centerpiece of W's second term domestic agenda.
"If you own property, stock, or, say, one hundred acres of farmland and tax time is approaching, you don't want to make a mistake, so you're almost obliged to go to a certified public accountant, tax preparer, or tax attorney to help you file a correct return. That costs a lot of money," writes Hastert. "Now multiply the amount you have to pay by the total number of people who are in the same boat. You can't. No one can because precise numbers don't exist. But we can stipulate that we're talking about a huge amount. Now consider that a flat tax, national sales tax, or VAT would not only eliminate the need to do this, it could also eliminate the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) itself and make the process of paying taxes much easier."

One promising alternative is proposed by Americans for Fair Taxation.

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