The Tax Foundation in Washington, D.C., calculates the tax burden to the average worker and the average taxpayer will work more than four months a year to pay federal, state, and local taxes making a day in the first week in May, Tax Freedom Day.
But is Tax Freedom Day really freedom from taxes? The government solution to solving a problem is by spending money and to spend money, the government raises taxes or invents additional taxes, tolls, fees or any other term that generates government revenue from the people, such as the Alternative Minimum Tax.
Most people own a car and although we paid for our car as well as the Sales Tax, we also have to pay yearly registration fee, which include a Registration Tax. As we drive, we must pay a Bridge or Road Toll Booth Tax and the government gets $.60 for each gallon of gasoline we use, which is nearly eight times the eight cents profit per gallon that the "rich" oil companies get. Truckers will also pay an additional Road Usage Tax. The government also gets an additional tax for boats (Watercraft Tax), Recreational Vehicles (RV Tax) and luxury vehicles (Luxury Vehicle Tax).
We are charged a Snack Tax for snack items, a Coffee Tax for coffee as well as CRV for recyclable items. If we purchase cigarettes or alcohol, we will pay Tobacco and Liquour Taxes, also known as a Sin Tax. Now, the Democrats have introduced a Plastic Bag Tax for the grocery bags we use.
When we purchase a home, we must pay numerous taxes including a Real Estate Tax. We continue to pay Properly Taxes each year. And when we sell our home, we must try to avoid the dreaded Capital Gains Tax. The Democrats have now proposed repealing the state mortgage interest deduction paid by each California homeowner. This would increase your state tax bill by hundreds of dollars or more each year. This would also hurt first-time home buyers and add another burden to those homeowners who already have lost equity in their home. This does not include some liberal Democrats who are attempting to repeal Proposition 13, which limits how much the state can increase property tax bills each year.
Look at the telephone bill. We pay Telephone Federal Excise Tax, Universal Service Fee Tax, Usage Surcharge Tax, Recurring and non Recurring Charge Tax, State and Local Tax, Charge Tax, as well as the Federal, State, and Local Surcharge Tax.
When we get married, we must pay a Marriage License Tax. If we go fishing and brought a hunting dog, we pay a Fishing or Hunting License Tax as well as a Dog License Tax.
This unfortunately does not include all the taxes, including several taxes imposed on businesses and corporations, which they view as another business expense to them. They naturally have to pass this expense on to the consumer in the form of a 22 percent Hidden Tax embedded in the cost of everything we buy.
We also pay into Social Security our entire working life, which was originally set up to be paid back to the people "tax free" in our retirement years; but in 1993 President Clinton with a Democrat controlled Congress, raised the amount of Social Security subject to taxation to 85 percent requiring everyone receiving Social Security to pay income taxes on their Social Security checks.
When you add up all these taxes including other fees and fines, including traffic citations, we actually pay $7 of every $10 either directly or indirectly to the government.
The Democrats have attempted to impose even more new taxes such as a Ticket tax on movies and concerts, iTunes Tax on music, Tractor Tax, Fertilizer Tax, Carbon Tax, Sports Utility Vehicle Tax, Internet Tax, a return of the Death Tax and even a Garage Sale Tax that would require people to report profits from items sold to neighbors. The Democrats have also introduced a Global Tax, International Tax, Bullet Tax, Bottled Water Tax, Toilet Paper Tax, and a Windfall Tax, which place a special tax on all stock market profits, including retirement funds, 401Ks, and mutual funds.
The 2006 and 2007 Congressional Pig Book reported by non-patrician Citizens Against Government Waste reports 43 billion dollars of Congressional waste including wasted money for the International Fund to finance the World Toilet Summit, the Waterfree Urinal Conservation Initiative, the Sparta Teapot Museum in Sparta, N.C. and a telescope searching for extra-terrestrial intelligence.
While taxation is important for our function of government, government spending is out of control. We should hold our government leaders accountable to find solutions to limit spending and reduce the taxes we pay.
The Constitution states no taxation without representation. Ironically, the Democrats new slogan is "change," which is all the American people will have in their pocket as the Democrats continue to raise taxes. Any taxpayer voting for a Democrat is like a chicken voting for Col. Sanders.
Frank Aquila is president of the South San Joaquin Republicans.
But is Tax Freedom Day really freedom from taxes? The government solution to solving a problem is by spending money and to spend money, the government raises taxes or invents additional taxes, tolls, fees or any other term that generates government revenue from the people, such as the Alternative Minimum Tax.
Most people own a car and although we paid for our car as well as the Sales Tax, we also have to pay yearly registration fee, which include a Registration Tax. As we drive, we must pay a Bridge or Road Toll Booth Tax and the government gets $.60 for each gallon of gasoline we use, which is nearly eight times the eight cents profit per gallon that the "rich" oil companies get. Truckers will also pay an additional Road Usage Tax. The government also gets an additional tax for boats (Watercraft Tax), Recreational Vehicles (RV Tax) and luxury vehicles (Luxury Vehicle Tax).
We are charged a Snack Tax for snack items, a Coffee Tax for coffee as well as CRV for recyclable items. If we purchase cigarettes or alcohol, we will pay Tobacco and Liquour Taxes, also known as a Sin Tax. Now, the Democrats have introduced a Plastic Bag Tax for the grocery bags we use.
When we purchase a home, we must pay numerous taxes including a Real Estate Tax. We continue to pay Properly Taxes each year. And when we sell our home, we must try to avoid the dreaded Capital Gains Tax. The Democrats have now proposed repealing the state mortgage interest deduction paid by each California homeowner. This would increase your state tax bill by hundreds of dollars or more each year. This would also hurt first-time home buyers and add another burden to those homeowners who already have lost equity in their home. This does not include some liberal Democrats who are attempting to repeal Proposition 13, which limits how much the state can increase property tax bills each year.
Look at the telephone bill. We pay Telephone Federal Excise Tax, Universal Service Fee Tax, Usage Surcharge Tax, Recurring and non Recurring Charge Tax, State and Local Tax, Charge Tax, as well as the Federal, State, and Local Surcharge Tax.
When we get married, we must pay a Marriage License Tax. If we go fishing and brought a hunting dog, we pay a Fishing or Hunting License Tax as well as a Dog License Tax.
This unfortunately does not include all the taxes, including several taxes imposed on businesses and corporations, which they view as another business expense to them. They naturally have to pass this expense on to the consumer in the form of a 22 percent Hidden Tax embedded in the cost of everything we buy.
We also pay into Social Security our entire working life, which was originally set up to be paid back to the people "tax free" in our retirement years; but in 1993 President Clinton with a Democrat controlled Congress, raised the amount of Social Security subject to taxation to 85 percent requiring everyone receiving Social Security to pay income taxes on their Social Security checks.
When you add up all these taxes including other fees and fines, including traffic citations, we actually pay $7 of every $10 either directly or indirectly to the government.
The Democrats have attempted to impose even more new taxes such as a Ticket tax on movies and concerts, iTunes Tax on music, Tractor Tax, Fertilizer Tax, Carbon Tax, Sports Utility Vehicle Tax, Internet Tax, a return of the Death Tax and even a Garage Sale Tax that would require people to report profits from items sold to neighbors. The Democrats have also introduced a Global Tax, International Tax, Bullet Tax, Bottled Water Tax, Toilet Paper Tax, and a Windfall Tax, which place a special tax on all stock market profits, including retirement funds, 401Ks, and mutual funds.
The 2006 and 2007 Congressional Pig Book reported by non-patrician Citizens Against Government Waste reports 43 billion dollars of Congressional waste including wasted money for the International Fund to finance the World Toilet Summit, the Waterfree Urinal Conservation Initiative, the Sparta Teapot Museum in Sparta, N.C. and a telescope searching for extra-terrestrial intelligence.
While taxation is important for our function of government, government spending is out of control. We should hold our government leaders accountable to find solutions to limit spending and reduce the taxes we pay.
The Constitution states no taxation without representation. Ironically, the Democrats new slogan is "change," which is all the American people will have in their pocket as the Democrats continue to raise taxes. Any taxpayer voting for a Democrat is like a chicken voting for Col. Sanders.
Frank Aquila is president of the South San Joaquin Republicans.
