Federal Taxes : Income Tax, Capital Gains Tax, AMT, Inheritance Tax, Excise Taxes, Gasoline and other Fuels Tax, Self Employment Taxes, Social Security/FICA, Medicare and more.
State Tax: Income, Sale & Use, Fuels, Oil/NG Production, Corporate Franchise, and more. (Texas has upwards of 40 taxes and fees.)
Seven states have no state income tax: Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Washington and Wyoming. Two others, New Hampshire and Tennessee, tax only dividend and interest income. See listing of individual income tax rates for 2006.
Five states have no state sales tax:The Sales Tax Clearinghouse notes that Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon have no state sales tax. In addition, many states have excise taxes levied against specific products.
Benjamin Franklin uttered the famous bon mot, "Nothing in life is certain but death and taxes." That saying still rings true -- even in "tax free" states, the U.S. federal government wants to tax you, too. There is no escape. (http://ask.yahoo.com/20011231.html)
Well, no excape ... except radical tax reforn. Scrap the IRS Code and move to the Fair Tax.
http://www.fairtax.org/site/PageServer?pagename=about_faq_answers#25
Exactly what taxes are abolished?
The FairTax is replacement, not reform. It replaces federal income taxes including personal, estate, gift, capital gains, alternative minimum, Social Security, Medicare, self-employment, and corporate taxes.
How are state tax systems affected, and can states adequately collect a federal sales tax?
No state is required to repeal its income tax or piggyback its sales tax on the federal tax. All states have the opportunity to collect the FairTax; states will find it beneficial to conform their sales tax to the federal tax. Most states will probably choose to conform. It makes the administrative costs of businesses in that state much lower. The state is paid a one-quarter of one percent fee by the federal government to collect the tax. For states that already collect a sales tax, this fee proves generous. A state can choose not to collect the federal sales tax, and either outsource the collection to another state, or opt to have the federal government collect it directly. If a state chooses to conform to the federal tax base, they will raise the same amount of state sales tax with a lower tax rate -- in some cases more than 50 percent lower -- since the FairTax base is broader than their current tax base. States may also consider the reduction or elimination of property taxes by keeping their sales tax rate at or near where it is currently. Finally, conforming states that are part of the FairTax system will find collection of sales tax on Internet and mail-order retail sales greatly simplified.
http://www.fairtax.org/site/PageServer?pagename=about_ask_expert
How does the FairTax affect illegal immigration?
The FairTax will, for the first time, tax undocumented workers who now evade U.S. income and payroll taxes. Under the FairTax, all persons living in the U.S. pay taxes, whether they are here legally or illegally. [My addition: Everybody pays, even touists pay in to social security and medicare funds.] [ view full answer ]
Does the FairTax tax used items?
The FairTax does not tax “used” goods but it is important to note that HR25 has a legal definition of the term “used”. This is necessary to ensure that items are taxed only once and to prevent tax cheating. [ view full answer ]
More interesting reading:
Purchasing Power - The Forgotten Factor
May 2, 2008 - The Fair Tax Blog