Renee in NC Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I have to write a 15-page research paper on some aspect of taxation (theory or philosophy.) The sample outline was about the different tax philosophies (flat tax, fair tax, etc.) Any ideas? I have some notes made on one topic, but I thought I would ask here and see what you could come up with.:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renee in NC Posted October 22, 2011 Author Share Posted October 22, 2011 Wow, that sounds dry. :lol: Hm... Believe it or not, it is very interesting to me!:tongue_smilie: I LOVE to research and analyze data to come to conclusions. This is a MAJOR paper, though, and I only have 8 weeks until it is due. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 Regressive taxes? Sin taxes? (cigarette tax comes to mind) Import / export taxation (to affect the trade balance)? Green taxes and incentives? Property taxes and school equity? Effect of tax policy on charitable giving? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoggirl Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 What about different states' takes on taxation? Some have income tax, some don't. Some tax investment income and nothing else. Some have higher real estate taxes. Some get more revenue from car tags. Some have estate taxes and inheritance taxes some have one but not the other. Maybe it has to be about federal taxation, though??? Or what about researching just the federal estate tax? How the unified credit has changed over the years. Different big-wigs feelings on the estate tax (Bill Gates, as an example). Or what about capital gains? Or what about the aspect of charitable deductions and other itemized deductions? Alternative minimum tax?? Foreign tax credit??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bootsie Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 If you like to research data and draw conclusions, then a paper on tax incidence might be good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renee in NC Posted October 22, 2011 Author Share Posted October 22, 2011 If you like to research data and draw conclusions, then a paper on tax incidence might be good. I had to look that one up - very interesting. The idea I had is something to do with marginal tax rates by quintile through history. This could involve some serious calculation if I calculate the tax burden in today's dollars (so take a theoretical $100K income and provide an inflation-adjusted tax amount through time.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy in NH Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 The adusted-dollars income tax burden through history would be an interesting study, particularly if you calculate it out over the various classes/income levels. I'd like to see the results. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renee in NC Posted October 22, 2011 Author Share Posted October 22, 2011 The adusted-dollars income tax burden through history would be an interesting study, particularly if you calculate it out over the various classes/income levels. I'd like to see the results. I'll have to email my professor about it and see if it would fit the scope of the assignment. He specifies theory/philosophy, so if I could tie it into theories about progressive/regressive tax it might fit. Hmmm.... Keep the ideas coming! Yes, I am willing to share whatever I end up doing, but everyone has to promise not to tear my writing apart.:tongue_smilie: ETA: I keep saying marginal, but what I mean is using marginal rates to determine the effective rate over the quintiles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
annandatje Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 I have to write a 15-page research paper on some aspect of taxation (theory or philosophy.) The sample outline was about the different tax philosophies (flat tax, fair tax, etc.) Any ideas? I have some notes made on one topic, but I thought I would ask here and see what you could come up with.:D Using taxation as social policy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renee in NC Posted October 22, 2011 Author Share Posted October 22, 2011 Using taxation as social policy That may be a really good general tax philosophy subject. Not too narrow, not too broad (or if it is, there are many subtopics to choose from.) Thanks for the idea! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tntgoodwin Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 Could you talk about taxation being theft and therefore immoral? Why is it legal for the government to take some of your money, but not legal for you to take someone else's money? That if we could get government spending down to the levels we had in the late 90's, an income tax wouldn't even be necessary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SailorMom Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 Tax farming - how it has changed.... The Greeks, Romans, and Byzantines all used it to their detriment. It is actually pretty interesting. Perhaps, instead, the optimum level of taxation. There is an interesting bell curve showing that once you get past a certain percentage, state income drops. Taxation vs or combined with currency devaluation? Again - could compare the Romans (starting in about 64 AD) with the current Quantatative Easement 1, 2, and possibly 3. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SailorMom Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 Could you talk about taxation being theft and therefore immoral? Why is it legal for the government to take some of your money, but not legal for you to take someone else's money? That if we could get government spending down to the levels we had in the late 90's, an income tax wouldn't even be necessary. I would be interested to hear how you would pay for the police, firemen, EMT's, roads, etc., etc...... I do think it is out of hand, and like Cain's flat tax idea. Right now we are discouraging growth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tntgoodwin Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 Well, only 41% of 2010 Federal revenues were from personal income tax. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renee in NC Posted October 23, 2011 Author Share Posted October 23, 2011 Could you talk about taxation being theft and therefore immoral? Why is it legal for the government to take some of your money, but not legal for you to take someone else's money? That if we could get government spending down to the levels we had in the late 90's, an income tax wouldn't even be necessary. Considering that the Constitution allows for taxation, I don't think that I would get a good grade on a scholarly research paper from that philosophical standpoint.;) I looked into your second post on the topic and found that the numbers didn't work to totally eliminate individual income tax (taking the inflation adjusted 1993 numbers and comparing them to the 2010 numbers.) However, if the budget were reduced to the 1993 level, individual income taxes could be reduced to 21% of the total revenue (theoretically cutting indiv. taxes in half and returning them to 1993 levels.) That is very interesting and I would love to compare the budget from 1993 to now by category to see where the greatest increases have occurred. I don't know that I could do a paper from that standpoint as it is more a political science topic than an actual taxation topic. It was an interesting concept, though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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