I'm for either one - just so long as we get rid of the IRS.

OK, Great. Who is going to collect revenues once we've gotten rid of the Internal Revenue Service?

Ummm, no one. It's called direct deposit.

Most of the IRS employees except enough for enforcement are transferred to the CIA to become interrogators.

Ummm, no one. It's called direct deposit.

Hrmm...interesting theory. So, who is going to track the direct deposits to insure that everyone is depositing (and lets not forget, most everyone already direct deposits...its called withholding)?

Even if we go to a flatter tax, I can't imagine that you would support a tax plan that would require someone making 15K a year to pay the same tax rate as someone making 200K a year?

Regardless what tax policy you support, we will still need a division within the Treasury Department to collect and track deposits. Now, we could change the name of the IRS, but it will always exist in some form of fashion.

Obviously, Sean, there would need to be some sort of small government agency to oversee a flat tax or FAIR Tax. When I and others say we went to "get rid of the IRS," obviously we mean in its current intrusive, oppressive, intimidation-based form.

There is another alternative to the flat or FAIR tax - a national transaction tax.

http://www.nttax.org/

It would replace ALL federal domestic taxes.

I happen to like the concept - it would be a completely fair tax and probably supercharge the economy - though I do think it needs more study.

Sean,
The total number of IRS employees at all levels is approximately 115,000, making it our largest federal bureaucracy. Auditors make up 25%, collectors 15% and criminal investigators 3%. The other 57% make policy, run the computers, answer taxpayer inquiries and god only knows what else. The most recent IRS budget was almost $11 billion.

There will always be a need of an enforcemet arm of the treasury dept. just like the state of TN has an enforcement arm to ensure businesses are collecting sales tax. Going to a flatter simpler tax could eliminate 80% of those 115,000 or more since the taxes are collected at the state level where an enforcement arm already exists.

And just like the individuals, there are some businesses that operate on a cash only basis thus avoiding collection. However, the fair/flat tax would capture all illegal revenue when it is spent.

If you go to the fair tax site and read the plan, you would also see there is a prebate to offset the sales taxes of low earners.

Fine, so lets just say "reduce the size of the IRS" instead of "eliminate the IRS" which is as intellectually dishonest as Kucinich's idea for a Department of Peace.