AARP Eye Center
Search
How to improve the tax code is the subject of much debate. Proponents of reform often call for increasing fairness and simplicity. But people define those concepts in different ways.
Policymakers use the tax system to raise revenue and to promote social policy goals. For example, tax breaks may be provided to encourage home ownership.
Most states and localities generate a significant portion of state and local revenue from the taxation of retail sales. Such taxes are attractive because they are relatively easy to administer.
The mainstay of local taxation is the tax on real estate, known as the property tax. It is used to fund an array of critical state and local services, most notably public schools.
The primary sources of government revenue are income, sales, and property taxes.
There is an increasing interest in taxes on energy consumption.
Excise taxes are sales taxes on individual commodities, services, or transactions such as motor fuel, cigarettes, or home sales. For example, motor fuel taxes fund highways.
There are two main ways for governments to collect taxes. One is by taxing income directly. This is known as an income tax. The other is taxing only income that is spent.
Currently, some types of income are either taxed at lower rates than ordinary income or are exempt from taxation to some degree.
In general, only cash income is subject to income tax. In-kind benefits—benefits that are received as goods or services rather than as cash—are not.