Is there a law stating that income taxes are required, by law, to be paid?

Question

I'm wondering, because icome taxes are unconstitutional, and the amount of states needed to ratify the inclusion of an income tax was never met.

Answer 1

Well considering that the IRS come knocking on your door if you don't, I would say that there must be a law somewheres, since it is certainly illegal.

Don't you recall the guy who barricaded himself in his house/fortress a year or two ago some place on the East Coast because he didn't want to pay income taxes and said that they were unlawful?

He got infiltrated and is probably sitting in a jail cell now haha.

Answer 2

Actually there isn't. Although I have paid mine dutifully for fear of prosecution and because of a general feeling of civic duty-somebody's got to pay for the roads and all the people driving around in circles with E plates. Actually it would probably shock you how many wealthy buggers with off shore accounts never pay taxes- got a problem, leave the country. Unfortunately you and I don't have that option. That is bluntly where the Government have us by the short hairs. It all has to do with the Federal Reserve and the general kick *** attitude of the Government that would starve without our dollars. There is a necessary side to it but there is a side that can be avoided if you park your assets elsewhere, where they can't take them away. But that's for the most part a rich man's game.

Answer 3

Raindance, the allegations that income taxes are unconstitutional and that the ratification was never met is untrue. These arguments are pushed by a 'tax law deniers' fringe group and occasional pop up in schlocumentaries like Zeitgeist and Freedom to Fascism.  

The contention that the 16th amendment was not ratified is principly based on a book by William Benson called "The law that never was". The book argues that many of the state ratifications didn't count for reasons like Illinois misspelled the law when they ratified it and that Ohio really wasn't a state at the time. These arguments have never been successful argued in court as a basis for not paying taxes.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_protest...

http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a5_...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Law_tha...

http://www.answers.com/topic/the-law-tha...

For more detail on some of the income tax arguments, see:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_protest...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_protest...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_protest...

Take a look. It's fun reading and provides a mini-lesson in history and the law, as well as how conspiracy theory thinking often works.