Title: The
1The FairTax Plan HR 25/S25
2The need for fundamental reform has never been
greater
- 75 percent of Americans are more interested in
tax reform making the system fairer and simpler
than in tax cuts. - 59 percent of Americans are dissatisfied with the
current system - 64 percent believe that the system requires major
changes or a complete overhaul. - Poll conducted by Wirthlin Worldwide, March
2000.
3Why reform the current system?
- It distorts economic activity
- Depresses total income and employment
- Hides the cost of government
- Is complex, and expensive to comply with and
enforce - Is subject to abuse by both taxpayers and the
IRS and - Is considered unfair.
4Four Attributes of a Good System
- Fairness
- Visibility
- Neutrality
- Simplicity
(The FairTax meets all four requirements!)
5Americans support the FairTax
- Polls show that while only 30 percent of
individuals initially supported a national retail
sales tax (NRST), once given the details, 70
percent of these same individuals favored a NRST. - Market research confirms these results. Only two
weeks of educational advertising in three test
markets produced large swings in favor of the
FairTax. Support increased by 11 percent and
opposition dropped 13 percent -- a 24 percentage
point swing. - Results from Wirthlin Worldwide (March 2000) and
Market Strategies (September 1996).
6The FairTax untaxes the poor
- Eliminates payroll taxes, which are more
burdensome than federal income taxes for 75
percent of Americans. - Rebates taxes on spending up to the poverty level
so that no one pays taxes on essentials. - A single mother with two children can spend
16,090 without paying any taxes. If she spends
twice that (32,160), her effective tax rate is
only 11.5 percent compared to 15.3 percent today.
7FAIR TAX REBATE TABLE
8FAIR TAX PROGRESSIVE GRAPH
9The FairTax is progressive.
Spending by a family of four Based on rebate at
2004 Poverty Levels
10FairTax dramatically increases purchasing power
- Gross Domestic Product would increase by 10.5
percent in the first year, equivalent to about
4,000-6,000 in average family income. - Would result in an immediate increase of 2.4
percent in family wealth. - Raises the real wage rate by 8 percent.
- Prices would fall by 20 to 30 percent, keeping
the the final price of a product largely
constant, but an individual would keep their
entire pay check.
11Creates new factories
- Eighty percent of corporate heads in Europe and
Japan said that they would build their next
factory in the U.S. when asked how their
operations would change if the U.S. replaced the
current tax code with a border-adjustable
National Retail Sales Tax. (Survey by Princeton
Economics) - Twenty percent said they would relocate their
international headquarters to the United States.
12 while creating jobs in and beyond those
factories
- Industry outputs and production would rise by 20
percent in the short-term and by 30 percent in
the long-term. - Initially, the labor supply would increase by
more than 25 percent. This will decline in the
long-term, but remain constant at 10 percent
higher than current supply.
13Gives the U.S. an export advantage
- U.S. exportersproduction costs will drop by 20
on average providing an immediate boost to their
competitiveness overseas. - Exports would jump 26.4 percent in the first
year. - Ultimately, exports would remain more than 13
percent higher than the level under the current
system. - Imports and exports will be put on a level
playing field. Exported goods will not be
subject to the FairTax, but imported goods will
be subject in the same manner as domestic
production.
14Revolutionizes interest rates
- As savings and investment dramatically increases,
the pool of funds available for borrowing
increases, decreasing the relative cost of
borrowing those funds. - The FairTax eliminates the tax costs that the
lender must pay on their earnings, dropping
interest rates toward todays tax-exempt rate. - Rates will decrease by 25-35 percent under the
FairTax.
15Increases investment
- Because the FairTax eliminates punitive taxation
of savings and investment would increase by 76
percent in the first year. - For the following ten years, investment would
remain 20 to 60 percent higher. - In the long-term, investment would remain
constant at approximately 15 percent higher than
under the current tax code.
16Boosts the stock market
- Replacing the present tax system with the FairTax
will cause the stock market to appreciate. Lower
interest rates mean that the present value of
expected future income will increase. Thus,
lower interest rates cause stock prices to rise.
- The FairTax reduces the top marginal tax rate to
23 percent compared to 57 percent today
increasing the expected future return on
corporate stock and the value of corporate stock.
17Reduces compliance costs
The FairTax eliminates
- The 724 small businesses spend on compliance for
every 100 they pay in taxes - Compliance costs that consume between 2 to 3.5
percent of GDP and - The 250 billion that Americans spend annually to
comply with the federal tax code, which equates
to 850 for each man, woman and child in the
U.S.
18 resulting in a 250 billion tax cut
- The FairTax removes the hidden and embedded costs
of our current tax structure from the economy. - The FairTax decreases compliance costs by 90
percent, resulting in savings for Americans,
lower costs for consumer goods and less economic
inefficiency. - This equates to a 250 billion tax cut, without
having to reduce spending or tax revenues.
19Why the FairTax?
- It is actively supported by over a half million
Americans. - It makes every American a voluntary taxpayer.
- It is fair, visible, simple and revenue neutral.
- No other bill eliminates all corporate and
personal federal income taxes, as well as the
regressive payroll tax.
20Why now?
- America is ready
- It will stimulate the economy
- Its bipartisan
- Its what our founding fathers intended
- It will fix Social Security as well
21WHAT CAN WE DO?
- Call your legislators office and ask that they
support FairTax HR 25 - Sign the FairTax Petition
- Support FairTax activities in your area
- Support FairTax with contributions
Visit www.fairtax.org for more information
22The FairTax Plan HR25/S25
Prepared by volunteers of Americans for
FairTaxation