Oddbean

What would I replace it with? As is currently proposed, a national sales tax of 23-25% on goods and services would be far, far preferable as it is levied on far fewer units (businesses) in society than the income tax (which is levied on a hundred million households in the US). That alone reduces management and oversight overhead tremendously. Furthermore, all businesses already do accounting which is turned into the authorities; the extra paperwork burden of this is relatively small. Most businesses have professional accountants to do their accounting for them, that would make this part of the regular workflow. Now, sales taxes are known to be regressive, since they fall on life necessities as well as luxury items. Therefor it makes sense to not levy a ST on foodstuffs (sans intoxicants and stuff like tobacco), thereby lightening the burden on low income households. I can also imagine a ST being a burden on small businesses, so exempting the first, say 10,000$ of biz revenue from the ST could be done, also adjustable according to general economic conditions. But anyway, there's a tax even better than this, more just, less privacy invading and with no negative social consequences: it's The Land Value Tax. Just tax land. #lvt #econ #policy nostr:nevent1qqszghdwtsm8w90hygcmpadwr7504n9wwxflcmzjh9n49ss9u80awuspz3mhxue69uhkummnw3ezummcw3ezuer9wcpzpqx25veh6vmkpm3426tjvzhs5qu2u65zumgtr9w8mv786qht898wqvzqqqqqqymdmp0r

I'd rather decentralize this whole debate, by kicking it down to the states. Why not levy a head tax on the states and let them figure the best way to collect it? Some states have low populations and huge extractive industries, like AK and ND. For them, taxing those industries a share of their profits would negate any need to tax normal people's stuff. Other states have enormous tourism sectors, so they could collect taxes on hotels and cruise ships or whatever. Anyway, the point is there's a ton of heterogeneity and it's best to avoid one-size-fits-all solutions.

I still prefer banning all taxes except sales taxes to prevent the continual adding of new taxes and being killed by a thousand cuts. That being said, I greatly prefer your proposal to what we have now.

Rather than the system we have now, I would rather have a national sales tax of 5%, which excludes food (meaning potatoes, meat, eggs, milk, etc. and not packaged poison like chips, dip, ice cream, etc.), medicine/medical care/medical supplies, clothes (up to $200 per item/pair/set), housing (rent/mortgage), and finally all firearms, ammo, and accessories. Everything else: 10%. Every 5 years, the tax rate would be reviewed and can only be adjusted down if the national debt increases, as a small, direct protection against inflation and may never be increased, as if any other national tax is levied, the system has a self-destruct clause which will nuke the whole thing. This system is easy, more fair and equitable since everyone will contribute, even illegals or tourists, it spares "the poor" from paying taxes on actual necessities, and encourages citizens to become more self sufficient.

I agree in principle. I'd probably make a few very minor tweaks, but I am 100% for eliminating all taxes except a sales tax and making every receipt show how much we are paying to each taxing authority. People need a reminder of how much they are actually paying. When they are nickel and dimed to death by a 100 different taxes, they have no idea how much they are actually paying. Many taxes cost more to comply with or to enforce than the revenue they bring in to the government. It is such a waste.

A lot of issues come up when you tax land. For instance, here in Texas, we have no state income tax, so most state and city revenue comes from property tax. The property tax is relative to the assessed value of each property, and it can change every year (though the tax dollar amount increase on each individual property is limited to 10% per year). For property owners, this can amount to a tax on unrealized capital gains, as the assessed value may rise far above what the property was purchased for. Additionally, it creates a class divide among the population, with property owners shouldering a larger portion of the tax burden, even though everyone is allowed to vote on property tax increases. So renters vote for new public services paid for by property taxes, but they don't pay the price of it immediately, unlike property owners. There are workarounds for these defects, to be sure, but they are illustrative of some of the potential pitfalls.

I agree wholeheartedly with replacing every tax with a sales tax. The other benefit you didn't mention, is that paying a sales tax with every purchase (especially if it was mandated to show on the receipt how much went to every taxing authority) would make people realize how much they really pay. It would make them realize that nothing is free and make them quit voting for whoever promises them the most "free" stuff because they would realize how much they were paying. If the sales tax replaced all taxes, (not just income tax), it would overall reduce the burden for small businesses. As a small business owner, I know I pay several taxes, that the cost of figuring how much I owe and doing all of the paperwork, is higher than the tax itself. On the other hand, I disagree vehemently with a land tax. If you have a land tax, you never own your property. You are just renting and can be evicted if you ever fail to pay your tax. Property tax is as evil, probably more evil than the income tax.