Why do we pay an income tax and a sales tax?

Question

if I spend my income on a purchaser which i'm taxed for, Why do I get taxed for the incom that facilitated that purchase?

Answer 1

Cuz the government likes $$$. (That's how you get services, infrastructure, roads, schools, etc. etc.)

Answer 2

Some people would have you believe that such "multiple" taxation is ordinary. In 1900, the average American paid about 5% of their total earnings toward taxes to support government at the local, state and federal levels. In 2000, that figure was up to 33%.

Look at the numbers on combined public debt and you begin to see something very peculiar. In 1900, public debt was virtually non-existent. Today, it's so enormously out of control that even our elected leaders fail to mention it much less the mainstream media.

Taxes exist for one purpose only. Revenue. Not necessarily revenue for government. Take Dell Computers in Round Rock, Texas.

Dell collects a city sales tax on the sale of their products. Then turns it over to the city of Round Rock. Then the city turns it back over to Dell. Excuse me, but why does a multi-billion dollar corporation run it's business so poorly that it has to get tax abatements (while you pay for property taxes renting or owning) and a sales tax rebate?

So much for capitalism. The bottom line is we are over taxed and much of that money simply goes from one bureaucrat to another, who do exactly nothing for the average citizen, but receive a paycheck, healthcare benefits and a pension.

It gets even better when you learn that the Federal Reserve is a privately owned corporation. Henry Ford said that if the American people knew how the Fed operated there would be a revolution overnight. It is the most profitable single business in the world.

Everytime we print bills the Fed makes face value off of printing paper. It's a ripoff and some have said the Infernal Revenue Diservice amounts to nothing more than a collecition agency for the Fed. Both the income tax and the Fed came to be, coincidentally, in 1913.

Answer 3

That is a great question. I know the government needs money to run but how much is wasted on stupid studies?! If they have an excess they put up a park along the road that no one can use just to take up the rest of the money left in the budget. WRONG

I do not believe in taxing the waitresses as the money has already been taxed. We DO pay sales tax once and getting taxed again really is wrong.

Like I said the government needs more money to pay these high wages to their employees as well! There is something WRONG with a goverment that screws it people. It is all we have however.

Government has much too much power however we give it to them to do as they please because we as a people are sheep and follow the crowd, don't vote or don't really care.

Answer 4

There are lots of different taxes out there. The big ones of course, are the lump-sum income related taxes, sales tax, real estate or property taxes. did i miss anything? then there are more specialty taxes. like tax on tobacco (which typically goes for everything except caring for smokers and smoking prevention), "estate" taxes, sometimes called "death tax." Fuel taxes (which, forgive me for saying this, need to be three times higher.) Also many many more.

Income tax is the big moneymaker for the federal government, as well as some financial laws and also import duties. Other taxes like sales and property taxes are left to the discretion of the state governments. For example, Nevada has a heavy tax on gambling, which gives it a very healthy state budget.

Of course none of this does anything about the questionable moral nature of any tax law; taxes are almost the definition of necessary evil. Though we may cringe at the thought of handing out well earned cash, I think none of us would want to go without the services provided by the government. So I think that as long as your friendly civil servants appear to be doing their jobs, we shouldn't evade our taxes just yet. And if you don't like how the government is handling it's finances, Since our leaders are at least partly elected, we have at least partly ourselves to blame for not complaining enough. This is not to say that I personally am a friend of Big Brother; far from it.

Additional:
In response to what Yeo said, while it is true that you and I pay far more in taxes than those in 1900, compared to 1900 the average American is *filthy* rich. Also keep in mind that in 1900 government services and oversight were largely an afterthought. there was no social security, no medicare, no federal highways, no one to insure our loans and keep banks froms cheating us out of everything we own,(they do it anyways, but what the hell.)The police and armed forces were a joke compared with today. Plumbing, sewers, and especially electricity, and roads where not to be expected. And corruption, and political machines where the norm. So before I go bad mouthing all the many faults of the Big guys, consider all the things the government has managed to get at least partly right over the years.

Answer 5

Sales tax goes to the state, and federal income taxes go to the feds of course. These fund different programs.

Some states levy both an income tax and a sales tax, and some have one or the other. It's a choice the state legislature makes in determining how to fund the various programs.

Answer 6

Hate to break this to you.but the gov't wants all they can get from you. With them, there's no law stopping them from double taxing, triple taxing, etc. every dime you make.

Federal income tax
State income tax
social security (a tax to help pay for the poor and elderly)
and after you get what's left?
sales tax
property tax
road use tax
gas tax
license plate renewal
real estate tax

if we spent money like our government does, we'd all be bankrupt!

Answer 7

I agree it sucks. It's the way the government gets billions in tax dollars so they can blow the money on unnecessary things or so they can have money to blow on things that don't benefit the general public. They can then make up a huge deficit they always talk about, but that never really goes away and then they can use that as an excuse to create or raise more taxes. Wow our government is a hoot. You gotta love our capitalistic economy too....

Answer 8

Everything the government provides comes from the income

Answer 9

Because the legislators that voted for the taxes weren't thrown out of office during the next election.

Answer 10

This is determined by the state in which you reside. I don`t pay state tax as I live in Texas.

Answer 11

so they can get a bit bothways , over here in australia we got GST that's supposed to be fairer for all , but somehow the government conveniently forgot to take the excise tax of fuels & oils - so every time we fill up , we get it 3 ways