Tax Reform -- You Know You're An American If... You Hate Taxes Too

You know the old saying:  "Don't tax me and don't tax thee.  Tax the fellow behind the tree."  Hating taxes.  It's the American way -- even before we had the good, old USA  (remember that little party in Boston).  We've sure come a long way since that little tea tax -- both in the number and amount of taxes we levy and the enormous number of programs we expect "government" to provide (sometimes forgetting that we are the government and we're the ones paying for all that pork and those special interest programs).

I think long-term tax reform is one of the most important issues facing the state and will dictate how competitive Utah will be in the global economy.  It will definitely be one of the most talked about issues for the next 6 months (and should provide an abundance of fodder for reporters and pundits alike).  For those that don't know, the Legislature created the Tax Reform Task Force  this past session.  15 brave (or really insane) souls, including myself, will be studying the issues and reporting back with recommendations in November.  For many of the public, the natural fear is that "tax reform" is code for "tax increases" and "tax simplification" means "the full employment act for CPAs."  Those translations definitely apply in the vortex called Washington DC (trust me...my father is a CPA), but it should be different here in Utah.  The task force, and other members of the legislature, have already made waves talking about tax cuts and limiting the size and growth of government  (see deseretnews.com | Utahns may get tax cut and deseretnews.com | Utah tax cut no slam dunk).  From my perspective, we need to have a light and simple tax burden, both for individuals and for businesses, if we want to have a strong economy.

For what it's worth, here were my recommended goals and reform principles for the task force:

Goals

Restructure the complete tax system:
    a.  Eliminating as many taxes as possible
    b.  Reduce taxes where possible
    c.  Establish a simple, predictable, competitive tax system that will be viable in a global economy.


Tax Reform Principles

• Make it transparent (so taxpayers know the cumulative taxes being levied)
• Make it simple (1st for the taxpayer, then for the government) -- Eliminate complexity wherever possible
• Make it fair -- Everyone pays their fair share
• Make it equal -- Tax equals equally
• Make it predictable -- Provide stability and certainty, allowing individuals and companies to engage in tax and business planning
• Foster economic growth -- Enhance the ability of Utah companies to compete locally, regionally, nationally, and globally
• Make government responsible for collecting its taxes, avoid placing a burden on nontaxpayers (e.g. businesses) to be tax collectors
• Provide taxpayer protections against excessive growth of tax revenues
• Ensure that taxpayers pay for their services, minimize the notion that someone else will magically subsidize the services on behalf of the taxpayer, which leads to a greater desire for services and an inability to fund them
• Privatize services that should be private
• Assess user fees for services that can be directly attributed to the user, avoiding general taxes providing cross-subsidizations
• Provide local governments with independent tax bases and minimize/eliminate formula distributions, state-to-local governmental transfers, etc.
• Improve revenue stability, but ensure that stability is still subject to the economic condition of the taxpayer
• Ease compliance, minimize noncompliance liability due to excessively complexity and uncertainty
• Minimize tax avoidance (tracking cross border purchases, etc.)
• Minimize use of debt to subsidize revenue shortfalls
• Government should not complete against the private sector and should not use business ventures to subsidize government operations
• Government run business should pay the same taxes as private businesses

So what will be the result?  We will either:

1. talk a lot and do nothing,
2. nibble around the edges, making some minor changes, while avoiding the hard issues, or
3. do the hard work and make the difficult recomendations that will be in the long-term best-interest for Utahns

For my money and yours, I certainly hope it's #3.

Comments

[Robert Wren]

1 I agree with your goals and reform principles and hope you can put them into practice. I'm fully supportive if the need for a tax cut, perhaps a better way is an increased comsumption tax and elimination of the income tax.
a Less bureaucracy/bookwork
b Taxes everyone "equally"
c Taxes tourists and visitors
d Doen't penalize productivity
e Can be avoided by reducing spending

2 As all Income Tax goes to education, a reduction in ed. cost would decrease the need for ed. funds. In particular, Utah now educates 20,000 (?) children of illegal aliens, at $5,000 each that's $100,000,000 per year. (Not including Instate Tuition benefit)

3 Perhaps a Legislative Audit of the cost of illegal aliens to Utah taxpayers; then decrease their access to government benefits and take action to encourage them to return home.

[Wally McCormick]

Taxes are out of control. Legislators dole out our tax money like THEY have the
printing press. After spending 4weeks at the legislature this year I found that 60 to 70% of the taxes are unconstitutional, however in inquiring further I found that Legislature doesn't want to hear that. So OUR tax dollars, to the tune of 61/2 millilon dollars a year, for our legal research department who writes on every bill " This is not considered to be unconstitutional."

For example, Our Sheriff's department pleaded for more money to protect the people of Utah and was shut down, while our CFR Governor Jon Huntsman put in for 18 million dollars for tourism which was "No problem." We have 220,000 illegals in this state running drugs, sex rings, gangs,humans, and taking the jobs of Citizens. I have been told that if the Sheriff's department is unable to protect us, that NOBODY will. Well, they can't, so hold on, or get off the couch and do something.

Our taxes also go to illegals for food, medical, clothing and schooling. I was raised to earn my own way for what I want and need, not to be a parasite off someone else's hard earned dollars.

So, are the illegals at fault. Not hardly. You can trace this problem back to greedy politicians, corporations, and local businesses that hire illegals at slave labor wages and who don't pay workmans comp, social security, or medical benefits.
Solution, rule of law, fine the employers and others that are aiding and abetting the invasion of our country and/or prison time.

Also the Bankers , Wells Fargo, Zion's Bank, Bank one, and B or A tell Illegals in Mexico that if they can get here , that they will give them an account, a $2000 loan , a bank card, and will finance a mortgage for them. They also export America's money to foreign countries to the tune of billions of dollars a year for illegals , which then will never return to this Country. Is this someone you want to bank with or work for ? Solution, rule of law. Fine the Managers and those above , and/or prison time for aiding and abetting a silent invasion of America.

Please Citizens and Patriots, we need to take America Back.