Dalton defined tax as ‘a compulsory contribution imposed by the public authority, irrespective of the exact amount of service rendered to the taxpayer, in return for which no specific and direct quid pro quo is rendered to the payer’. In accordance to this definition, it is clear that paying tax is a compulsory contribution to which the state is entitled to. Even if the benefit in return to the tax paid is not proportional to the taxpayer, the taxpayer must pay taxes or face the consequences of avoiding taxes. Prof. Seligman also defined tax as ‘a compulsory contribution from the person to the State to defray the expenditure incurred in the common interest of all without any reference to the special benefits conferred’. As it can also be concluded from the statement, tax liability must be incurred by a taxpayer in order to fund the operations performed by the state, regardless of the service the taxpayer might or might not enjoy.
The primary reason for the imposition of tax is to gather revenue for the functioning of Government. Services such as road maintenance, schools, hospitals, etc. require funds which are collected via taxation. These are the most basic operations of government which requires tax funds. A few other complicated reasons for the collection of tax can be to fund wars or encourage a rapid economic development – which all requires funds. Tax policy can also be very useful and effective to attain price stability, control business boom and depressions and to maintain full employment. Tax is also used to diminish inequalities in society via income and wealth taxation, where those with high income and wealth are affected more than those with lower income and wealth.
It is now understood that tax is an impositio...
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...fair to comment that adhering to the Adam Smith’s principles would serve a welcome change in the tax structure. The manner in which the tax structure operates in UK has been deemed to very confusing and complicated and it evidently does not conform to the canon of certainty and economy. In accordance to Quotation 4, Appendix, a wide variety of changes in the tax structure would be enabling the four canons of Smith. The sole purpose of these changes suggested by Bruce Hogarth-Jones is to make the tax structure of UK simpler. There have also been suggestions made on the introduction of a flat-rate tax system, which sees strong opposition from the very rich as they would lose their loopholes via which much exploitations of tax can be achieved. As suggested by Marc Wilson, “…it's perhaps time that the man in the middle, who funds the bulk of the system, got a fair shake."
Hall, A. (2001, August). The Flat Income Tax and the Fair Tax Consumption Tax: A
The poll tax was a flat fee paid by every citizen whether they were rich or poor. This was a very unpopular tax and it was thought to be a huge political mistake. There were riots and march of protesters through the streets of the UK in 1987 chanting the phrase “Can’t pay, Won’t Pay.” This caused britain to lose faith in their Prime Minister.
The tax policy in the United States is very confusing. When the tax policy was originally written in 1913 it was four hundred pages. Now, over the past ninety one years, that tax policy has evolved to over 72,000 pages. Since the tax code has become so lengthy and nearly impossible to understand, the topic of tax reform has been in the minds of many. Although, most barely think about tax reform until tax season. It is a controversial subject due to the impact a change in tax code would have on the American people. The two most popular and widely known stakeholders in this debate are the two major political parties in the United States, the Democrats and the Republicans. The two parties share absolutely no common ground on the subject of tax reform, other than thinking the other parties solution is wrong. The Democrats, in general, want to raise taxes on the wealthy, while Republicans, generally, want to cut taxes for everyone (Democratic Party) (GOP). Unfortunately, with the United States economy currently doing so poorly, the parties can no longer afford to remain at a standstill, some sort of compromise is going to have to be made. The implementation of a flat tax, and discarding the current tax system would be a compromise that both parties can agree on and will simplify the tax code, overall benefiting all Americans.
I. You might have heard politicians in the news, talk about overhauling our tax system with a new fix-all idea, the flat-tax. This would simplify our overly complicated tax system and might seem appealing at first glance, however there are serious problems with it.
Taxation is a system that the government uses to gain money, they gain this money to support the government and provide public services. The government may secure their profits without taxation from natural resources, products, or services. (Taxation 1)
The author is a editor and writer for a textbook publishing company. She argues that there are pros and cons of the system that is in place now, as well the new proposed flat tax system. With the flat tax system it would be easier for businesses and individuals because the tax would be simpler making taxes easier. There would be more drawbacks with the flat tax system such as: fewer jobs for accountants—no tax deductions. States would also be allowed to implement their own taxes. For those reasons they believe that the current tax system is the best system and people would not support a flat tax. The circumstances that cause the chapter to be written is that there could be a need for new textbook to be written. The purpose of the article is to educate students about the government, especially in America, this chapter was about taxation. The audience are students of either history or politics. He believes it will not be used in America: “The plans sound straightforward and have much to recommend them. But convincing voters and taxpayers to embrace them is a monumental task. People complain about their taxes, and the thought of taxation taking on a radically different form is a lot for people to
The U.S. along with only 6 other countries use the progressive tax, the progressive tax is a very unfair and inconsistent taxing system.This system has a varying rate that taxes the higher income homes with a higher rate,and the lower with a reduced rate.The Flat tax is a taxing system that has one flat tax rate for all ranges of income homes. The flat tax has been proposed multiple times throughout legislation , but not once has it been taken seriously as a cure to fix the current tax problems.The U.S. needs to adopt the Flat Tax because it is a simplistic system that would be fair to use and also promote economic growth.
This paper will take a close look at the concepts of the "flat tax," and look at the possible benefits and potential failings. Although there is a basic format to the flat tax, there are multiple flat tax proposals that have been offered by conservatives. Along with critiquing the basic format of the flat tax, this paper will compare an...
Although the idea of having low taxes is ideal, it cannot contribute to the growing economy debt that has been placed. With taxes being paid by well-informed citizens the economy can still continue to borrow money in order to spend money for the safety and well-being of the people. Keynes has been the theorist whose ideas we still use today.
The current tax policy in the United States is very confusing and it is very costly for our government to administer it. It is in the best interest of our country and its citizens to revise or replace our current tax policy.
Taxation has always been a major controversy. Just like any major corporation, the government is constantly looking to raise revenue. The easiest and fairest way to do this is by taxing the people. However, how the people will be taxed is always an issue.
A growing trend in our society today is corporate tax evasion. It has become increasing more common for corporations to pay no or little income tax, and in some cases actually receive money back from the government. It is illegal and therefore deviant by that definition. Corporate tax evasion (using borderline legal means) is widespread. White-collar crime is a term that is usually applied to crimes associated with business that do not involve violence or bodily injury to another person. Corporate tax evasion falls into the category of white collar crime.
The use of taxes is one of the government's favorite ways to make its presence known in the economy. While this method seems blatantly obvious, many of the ways the government uses the money collected by taxation is not. Some of the money it takes is used to fund other programs designed to "protect" consumers and to "create" jobs. Be...
The four types of taxes this paper will discuss are income tax, sales tax, property tax, and user fees. Income tax was not permanently established until the 16th Amendment was passed in 1913. Most federal taxes had been previously derived from excise taxes on tobacco and alcohol and other consumer goods. The US Constitution, when written and still continues to, legitimize taxation in the United States through Article I, Section 8, that Congress has the power to lay and collect taxes, duties et al, pay the debts or provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States (Cornell Law LII). Investopedia defines income tax as ‘a tax government(s) impose on financial income generated by all entities within their jurisdictions (Investopedia, 2014). Businesses and individuals are required to file an income tax return every year to determine if they owe taxes or qualify for a refund. That is determined by measuring the total income one earns to a designated tax rate, calculating one’s taxable income, which are some or all items of income reduced by other adjustments or expenses in that tax year. There are different subcategories of income tax; there is a federal income tax that is set by the federal government, apart from a few states, there is a state income tax that is imposed on their respective residents, as well as the possibility of there being local income tax ...
Taxation is a compulsory levy imposed on the income, value of goods and services of individuals, partners and companies by the government. It is can be said to be an approach of imposing tax on the citizen. This imposition of tax, is expected to yield income which should be utilized in the provision of both basic and substantial infrastructural amenities, both social and security, as well as creates conditions for the economic well-being of the society at large.