Taxes

Taxes continue to be a burden on hard-working Americans. I have consistently been a strong proponent of measures to lower the tax burden on all Americans.

Our tax code is about the most unfair, complex, expensive to comply with and anti-competitive code we could create.  I have been working for years, through my committee assignments, the president’s Fiscal Commission and the Gang of Six, to craft solutions for comprehensive tax reform, and you can be assured that I will continue to fight for lower taxes and a comprehensive reform of the federal tax code.

It is estimated that the average family pays nearly 40 percent of its income in local, state and federal taxes combined.   In fact, we have more professional tax preparers in the United States than law enforcement officers (765,000) and professional firefighters (310,400) combined.

In a family where both parents work, one parent is essentially working for the government.  Furthermore, individual taxpayers spend approximately 1.7 billion hours a year calculating their taxes.  This is unacceptable.  I am dedicated to reforming the tax code to lower the burden on all Americans and making the tax code fairer, flatter and simpler.

My concerns over the tax structure in the United States haven’t changed in the intervening years.  This is your money, and you deserve to see clearly how spending decisions by Congress are reflected in its decisions.  I will continue to push for limited government that spends wisely and avoids excessive, unfair and outrageous spending sprees with your tax dollars.

In April 2009, many Idahoans joined "tea parties" throughout the state to take a stand against excess taxes and federal spending. These events mirrored the famous Boston Tea Party in 1773, when colonists demonstrated their frustration and displeasure over the British Parliament's sovereignty over them. For as long as I have been in public service, I have fought to keep spending under control and to keep taxes as low as possible.  In 1997, it was an honor to join with four of my colleagues from the U.S. House of Representatives to toss the U.S. Tax Code in the Boston Harbor.

Useful Links:

• Idaho Taxpayer Advocate

• Department of Treasury

• IRS (Internal Revenue Service)