How informed are you when it
comes to paying your taxes? I fear many
Americans grumble and complain a little just to be polite, but if asked could
not say exactly how much they paid in taxes last year. I strongly suspect most people filing a 1040
long form only take note of line 76.
They write their check for that amount, or worse yet, rejoice that that
government is going to give them that amount.
First, the government is not “giving”
you the amount on line 76. They are “refunding”
money you gave them that exceeded your obligation. In other words, they withheld too much from
your paycheck, and now they are giving it back to you without interest. It is not a gift. And it doesn’t mean you didn’t pay
taxes. (I don’t even want to get started
on the notion of Earned Income Credits).
Of course, about 40% of those filing a return pay nothing to support the
federal government or actually get money from the federal government instead of
having to contribute to the cause. But,
unless you are one of those in that 40%, you aren’t getting a gift.
Second, the amount you write on
the check to send in with your 1040 is generally not the entire amount of taxes
you paid for the year. That is just the
amount of money you still owe after the IRS already deducted a bunch. They didn’t take enough, so they want more.
Finally (sort of), the taxes you
contribute to the federal and state governments are not the only taxes you paid
last year. I also paid about 8% for
every dollar I earned every time I purchased something at the store. That’s 8% on a dollar that has already been
taxed by the federal and state governments.
Depending on where you live, you may or may not have to pay taxes for
groceries. But you will pay an additional
tax for alcohol, and maybe for things like imported foods, candy bars, and soft
drinks. You also paid special taxes
every time you filled the gas tank. In
California, some of that is supposed to go to maintaining our roads, but
somehow it occasionally gets diverted.
Tax has become such a disgusting word to some people, so often you will
pay a “fee” instead of a tax for things like fire protections districts. If you own property, you paid property taxes
and perhaps taxes to special districts and money to pay off voter-approved
bonds. So, don’t think for a moment that
the check you wrote to the IRS or state government is what you paid in taxes
last year.
Now, lest you think I am some
sort of anarchist or tax evader, let me explain why I believe it is important
that we all think about this matter of taxes.
The federal government alone has more than a $17 trillion dollar debt (http://www.usdebtclock.org/). That means each of us taxpayers would have to
pony up about $152,000 to pay it off.
But since our elected officials are spending about $626 billion dollars
more than we are all contributing every year, the debt relieve we would
experience by paying it off would be short-lived. I would love to see the debt paid off
completely, as I strive to do with my personal finances. But why bother if it’s just going to balloon again?
I also don’t mind paying taxes
if that money goes to effectively running the government so I and my family are
protected from those who would harm us, the infrastructure I need is built and
maintained, and other essential services are provided. My gripe is that I know many of my tax
contributions are being wasted or stolen.
My money is being used by government employees to attend lavish
conventions that are probably not essential to them performing their jobs. My money is being used to help foreign
governments figure out how Sesame Street characters can be adapted to their
cultures. My money is being spent on
determining if Japanese quail are more likely to be amorous while high on cocaine. My money is being used to pay people to
target specific groups for denial of tax exempt status simply because the
groups are perceived to be in opposition to the current administration. My money is being spent on determining why
chimps throw their poop around. I
suspect they are just aping politicians they’ve seen on TV.
I have a proposal that will
never be seriously considered by any elected official. I call it the Truth In Taxing Act. Here’s how it would work. First, taxes would no longer be due on April
15th. They would be due on
the Tuesday before the first Monday in November. Election day is on the Tuesday following the
first Monday in November.
Second, every single person over
the age of 18, whether they worked or not, whether they owe any taxes or not,
would have to write the following information on an official form: The total amount they earned the previous
fiscal year. The total amount of money
the government is keeping or demanding.
The percentage of their total income they are contributing to the
government. Then they would have to sign
the form and write a check for what they still owe. If they are getting an Earned Income Credit,
they would have to sign a thank-you card to the 60% who are supporting them.
Just an idea.
No comments:
Post a Comment