Anybody in favor of a proportional tax system?

Question

You know, like, regardless of income, everyone pays the same % or so to the government? It's one of those things that SOUND good in theory, but I know there are disadvantages. Please help!!!

Answer 1

No

the problem is that if we all paid, say, 10% taxes, people would all go, oh, that's totally fair! But...

when tax time comes, and the family that makes 20,000 dollars a year and barely live above the poverty line has to pay 2000 dollars, it's a LOT for them

and then the person who makes 200,000 pays 20,000 in taxes, but it's not so hard on them.

The flat tax is unfair to the poor.

Answer 2

Nope, not me.  A flat tax would disproportionately affect the poor and middle class.  To raise the same revenue as the current graduated income tax, a flat tax with no deductions or exemptions would need to be levied at 25% or higher.  Only the wealthiest of taxpayers pay a net rate anywhere near that high.  So if you give the wealthy a break, you have to make it up somewhere, leaving it to the poor and middle class.

Check it out yourself.  Pull your most recent tax return and find the Total Tax line.  Roll out any credits that you may have received as they would no longer be available.  Now get the total income line from the front.  Add back any pre-tax deductions such as medical insurance or retirement contributions.  Now divide the adjusted total tax by your total income.  If you're like most taxpayers, the percentage will be well below 25%.  Multiply the total income by 25% to see how much your taxes would increase under a flat tax.

Answer 3

Search on "fair tax" and "flat tax" and you'll get many, many discussions.