And I’m Listening
Back on March 2nd, I wrote a piece titled Why It’s Time for a Flat Tax.
Well, now Steve Forbes in jumping on my bandwagon, and has written a new book, Flat Tax Revolution
Ontheborderline summarizes the plan for us:
Briefly some of the highlights of his Flat Tax plan would be:
1. The tax rate would be 17 percent on personal income and corporate profits.
2. There would be generous exemptions for individuals: $13,200 for each adult and $4,000 for each child or dependent, plus a $1,000 tax credit for each child age 16 and under.
3. A family of four would pay no federal income tax on its first $46,165 of income.
4. The capital gains tax would be eliminated.
5. The Alternative Minimum Tax would be abolished, as would the death tax.
6. Companies could expense all investments at once – no more depreciation schedules.
“The economic boom the flat tax would unleash would be stupendous,†said Forbes.
That’s largely because the flat tax would encourage hard work and productivity, corporate expansion and investment, according to Forbes.
Liberal Curt Buckley has some concerns about the Forbes flat tax, but correctly states:
…there is a real problem with taxes. Americans hate paying taxes and they hate the IRS (with some justification). If a flat tax or similar proposal gets some traction the Republicans are going to run with it. Imagine Democrats standing around claiming that there is no problem with taxes or the IRS, that everything is just fine as it is. They will be deservedly laughed out of town.
An e-letter I subscribe to just published an interview with Steve Forbes in which he discusses what needs to happen for a flat tax structure to take shape here in the US.
Left by J Walton on October 14th, 2005 at 1:31 pm