Income Tax project

Economics Political Theory
1

I think it would be beneficial to examine the income tax from a historical perspective through the eyes of the media at the time. Given, the media is never perfect, it at least provides some form of perspective, as there are facts included in newspaper as well besides opinions.

For example, I was looking up “income tax” in archives from 1890 to 1920 and found this interesting article (4/9/1894):

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=G4RQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=diAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4107,560979&dq=income+tax&hl=en

It discusses opposition to the income tax, and though it expresses preference for tariffs, it gives a perspective on the tax different from the mainstream view held today:

“Those who insist upon injecting into this bill the undemocratic feature of an income tax - a relic of war legislation - pause and reflect upon the possible consequences of their unwarrantable demands.”

Indeed, the income tax would be greatly expanded during WWII - making the income tax the child of war.

Furthermore,

“the public should not be misled into the belief that only those whose incomes exceed $4,000 are affected by this bill. This is a mistaken idea. In the first place, all those having incomes less than $4,000 but more than $3,500 are put to the annoyance of making sworn returns and they neglect it at their peril”

I am not sure of his exact intention in writing this, but the tax indeed has not proven to have remained only on those earning $4k and above in income (inflation adjusted).

“in the second place, it may reasonably be apprehended that some portion of the tax paid will reimburse itself by an increase of rents, where the income was derived from that source.”

Law of unintended consequences

I was hoping that any interested members would help me collect sources showing the differing views on the income tax.

2

This is a great idea. A systematic, critical history of taxation has, as far as I can tell, never been written so the field is wide open. I own Charles Adams’ book on the subject but his approach is fairly limp-wristed compared to Rothbard or Hoppe. He is a Christian and, unfortunately, takes the “Romans 13” view that the government has a divine prerogative to tax, even if this prerogative has been often “abused”

The details he discusses, however, are fascinating and damning in their own right. In ancient Egypt, for example, the Pharaoh would send minders to visit households to ensure that women were not using oil drippings from their own cooking but were, instead, purchasing the approved oil which was produced commercially and taxed. Sound familiar? Like maybe 99% of the entire US government’s commercial code??

Are there any young, ambitions AE grad students interested in an econ doctoral thesis?

Clayton -