letter to the editor

What is fair taxation?

Tue, 07/18/2017 - 10:15am

Dear Editor:

Fair taxation began in 1862 where lower incomes ($600-$10,000) were taxed at 3% and higher incomes like $15,000 were taxed at 5%.  President Lincoln signed the bill to help pay for the Civil War.

Tax laws changed 27 times between 1863 and 2003. In 1986 President Reagan signed the Tax Reform Act containing 300 provisions and being the third change in tax laws since 1918. In 1998 there was the IRS restructuring and reform Act. Clearly 300 provisions can make for a murky, confusing tax walk.

The key here is how do we define fair?

Corporations lobby for the wealthy, but not for the workers. Unions were worker lobbyists, but corporations have worked to destroy union lobbyists. Is that fair?

Fair taxation in our historic beginnings implied that those of wealth would pay a higher tax than those with less income and assets. Since 1862 the fair tax issues in the U.S. have morphed into hidden tax deductions that are available to those with assets and not as available for those with few to no deductions and assets.

Fairness means when tax cuts are given to the wealthy, they are also given to the lower income citizens to keep the tax ratios fair. So far that has not happened.

You may rush to inequality’s widened gap as proof that lower income workers are unfairly treated, but that is a path full of haze. Elizabeth Warren and others state the system is rigged. If true, will the system be unfair and rigged forever, or do we need union lobbyists back to protect our interests in fair taxation? If not the unions then who?

Without a powerful lobbyist, workers and low income families will continue to struggle without fair taxation.

Fair is treating someone in a way that is right or reasonable, or treating people equally and not allowing personal opinions to influence your judgment.  Do we keep this in mind when tax reform is considered?  

Jarryl Larson

Edgecomb