[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 16 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 16

   Expressing the sense of the Senate that the income tax should be 
           eliminated and replaced with a national sales tax.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 21, 1997

Mr. Lugar submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
                          Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
   Expressing the sense of the Senate that the income tax should be 
           eliminated and replaced with a national sales tax.

Whereas the savings level in the United States has steadily declined over the 
        past 25 years, and lagged behind our industrialized trading partners;
Whereas our economy cannot achieve strong, sustained growth without adequate 
        levels of savings to fuel productive activity;
Whereas the income tax, the accompanying capital gains tax, and the estate and 
        gift tax discourage savings and investment;
Whereas the methods necessary to enforce the income tax infringe on the privacy 
        of our citizens and divert an estimated $157 billion of taxpayer 
        resources to comply with its rules and regulations;
Whereas the Internal Revenue Service estimates that each year it fails to 
        collect 17 per centum, or $127 billion, of the income tax owed to the 
        Federal Government;
Whereas the income tax system employs a withholding mechanism that limits the 
        transparency of Federal taxes;
Whereas the most effective tax system is one that promotes savings, fairness, 
        simplicity, privacy, border adjustability, and transparency;
Whereas it is estimated that the replacement of the income tax system with a 
        national sales tax would cause our savings rate to substantially 
        increase;
Whereas the national sales tax would achieve fairness by employing a single tax 
        rate, taxing the underground economy, and closing loopholes and 
        deductions;
Whereas the national sales tax would achieve simplicity by eliminating 
        recordkeeping for most taxpayers and greatly reducing the number of 
        collection points;
Whereas the national sales tax would be the least intrusive tax system because 
        most taxpayers would not be required to file returns or face audits from 
        the Internal Revenue Service;
Whereas the national sales tax is border adjustable and would place United 
        States exporting on a level playing field with our foreign competitors;
Whereas a national sales tax is a transparent tax system that would raise 
        Americans' awareness of the cost of the Federal Government; and
Whereas a national sales tax would best achieve the goals of an effective tax 
        system: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that:
            (1) the income tax system, both personal and corporate, the 
        estate and gift tax, and the accompanying capital gains tax be 
        replaced with a broad-based, single-rate national sales tax on 
        goods and services;
            (2) the national sales tax rate be set at a level that 
        raises an equivalent level of revenue as the income taxes 
        replaced;
            (3) the Federal Government work with the States to develop 
        a State-based system to administer the national sales tax and 
        that States be adequately compensated for their efforts; and
            (4) the Congress and States work together in an effort to 
        repeal the sixteenth amendment.
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