|
 To
most Americans, 37 hours is practically a work week. To the Internal
Revenue Service, it is the amount of time they estimate it takes a
taxpayer to prepare the basic short form.
It’s no wonder.
According to the
Tax Foundation, as of 2005, the Internal Revenue Code contained over
two million words – a nearly 20% increase since 1995.
To help taxpayers
navigate a tax code that is 470 times the number of words in the U.S.
Constitution, the IRS issues over 200 tax forms and puts out more than
1,000 publications, forms, and instructions. These are all conveniently
alphabetized on the IRS website from the 1040 Short Form to the
5304-SIMPLE. Not to be confused, of course, with the 5305-SIMPLE, the
5205-SA, the 5305-S, or the 5306-A. Simple enough?
If not, taxpayers can
refer to the frequently asked questions section of the IRS website,
where commonly-made queries are organized into one of seventeen
Frequently Asked Question Categories, and further subcategorized for
easy reference.
Today’s tax system is
anything but simple. But it is not just complex and frustrating, it is
costly. Individuals spent
$29 billion a year for tax software, tax preparation services,
postage, and other out-of-pocket costs related to filing their federal
income tax—that is twice the size of Iceland’s economy.
Not only is our current
tax collection system expensive for individuals to comply with, it is
expensive for our government to run -
$12.7 billion this year to be exact. In January of last year, the
IRS employed
92,690 people—more than the combined number of employees at the
Departments of State, Labor, Energy, Housing & Urban Development, and
Education.
This year, the average
American will work the first 103 days of the year to pay their federal,
state, and local taxes, according to the Tax Foundation. This past
Monday, April 13th marked “Tax
Freedom Day,” the day on which the average American will start
working for anything besides taxes. Comparatively, in 1910 when taxes
were just 5% of a person’s income, Tax Freedom Day fell on January 19th.
Additionally, the
National Taxpayers Union reports that
32.6% of all tax returns are non-paying returns. In addition to the
non-payers, roughly
15 million individuals and families earned some income last year,
but not enough to be required to file a tax return. Adding the
non-paying returns to the non-filers gives you roughly 57.5 million
income-earners who will be paying no income taxes. Even 57.5 million is
not the actual number of people in our nation that don’t pay federal
income taxes because one tax return often represents several people.
When all of the dependents of these income-producing people are counted,
roughly 120 million Americans – 40 percent of the U.S. population – do
not pay federal income taxes.
America needs a new tax
code – one that is simple and equitable. I support an optional one-page
flat tax as outlined in
H.R. 1040, which would allow businesses and individuals to opt for a
flat tax rate of 19%. The rate would decline to 17% after two years of
participation. This simple one-page flat tax from would not need a
Frequently Asked Questions page, because it would take less than 30
minutes to accomplish, saving American individuals and businesses
billions in tax preparation costs. Of course, for the many families in
the 25% tax bracket or higher, this plan will take money out of the
hands of those in Washington and back into the hands of the people that
earned it. As one of the 17 Members of Congress to vote against each of
the spending bailouts over the last two years, I believe we cannot act
soon enough to put a freeze on the amount of money Washington spends.
Until tax code
replacement becomes a reality, however, I am also working to improve our
current system by:
Balancing the
Federal Budget – I’ve cosponsored
H. J. Res. 1, proposing a balanced budget amendment to the
Constitution of the United States. This resolution would reign in the
out-of-control spending that is driving tax rates up now and likely in
the future. In addition, it would mandate that Congress could not
increase our federal debt except under extraordinary circumstances and
with three-fifths approval by each house of Congress.
Reducing the Current
Tax Burden – I’ve supported
H.R. 470, a bill that would reduce income taxes by 5% across the
board, increase the child tax credit, make the lower capital gains tax
rate permanent, and repeal the Alternative Minimum Tax, among other
things.
Making these changes
would go a long way in reforming our tax code into a simpler, less
costly, and more equitable system. Perhaps one day we might even be
able to do our taxes in the time it takes to have a lunch break, rather
than a work week.
Please visit randyforbes.house.gov
to learn more about the work Congressman Forbes is doing on
taxes and on our
federal budget.
In the News: Energy
 Everyone
wants a new energy future for our nation. The question is how do we get
there? With gas prices on the rise again, we are sure to begin to hear
more about the energy debate.
Congressman Forbes has introduced
The New Manhattan Project, which has been hailed as one of the most
innovative energy solutions before Congress. The project calls on the
United States to reach 50% energy independence in 10 years and 100% in
20 years, and will award competitive prizes to the first individual or
group who can reach any of seven established energy goals:
- Double CAFE standards to 70 MPG while keeping vehicles affordable
- Cut home and business energy usage in half
- Make solar power work at the same cost as coal
- Make the production of biofuels cost-competitive with gasoline
- Safely and cheaply store carbon emissions from coal-powered plants
- Safely store or neutralize nuclear waste
- Produce usable electricity from a nuclear fusion reaction
For information on the project
that you can download and share with your friends and family,
click here.
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