US Tax Groups Say Simplification Unlikely

by Mike Godfrey, Tax-News.com, Washington

15 February 2002

Several US tax and accountacy groups have renewed calls for simplification of the country's tax code, warning taxpayers that unless they rally behind the demands, Congress will not act.

Although, according to a recent Tax Foundation report, there is 'broad agreement on which parts of the tax code pose the most complexity for taxpayers', Congressmen have little incentive to push for simplification, as their constituents tend to be more concerned with other issues.

However, the situation is reaching fever pitch for tax professionals and lawyers. According to tax publishers CCH Incorporated, their Federal Tax Reporter (which gives guidelines for navigating the United States' tax code) ran to 51,000 pages this year. When the publication began in 1913, it filled just 400 pages.

The problem, according to CCH, is that many laws are enacted hastily and later require follow-up measures and 'technical corrections'. Implementing regulations and the interaction between state and federal tax laws also serve to add to the confusion.

A recently released report from the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) entitled 'Guiding Principles for Tax Simplification' pleaded with US voters to show that they care about tax simplification. 'Congress isn't being pummelled,' lamented Pamela Pecarich, Chair of the Tax Executive Committee at the AICPA. She revealed that last year, when Congress was given the choice between repealing the individual Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) or reducing regular taxes 'members wanted to reduce regular tax rates because that is what they hear about from constituents'.

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