Congressman Bob Goodlatte has reintroduced the Tax Code Termination Act (H.R. 352) to abolish the Internal Revenue Code. Sixty-nine bipartisan cosponsors have signed on in support of this legislation.
“The tax code should work for American families and businesses – not against them,” said Goodlatte. “With American taxpayers spending more than 6.1 billion hours to prepare and file their tax returns, you know the current tax code is no longer working in a fair manner for our nation’s citizens. At roughly 4 million words, the tax code is unfair, costly, and impossibly complex. Tax code complications leave families with little incentive to save and invest. We need to scrap this tax code and start from scratch.”
This legislation will repeal the entire tax code, except portions that deal with Social Security and Medicare, by December 31, 2017, and calls on Congress to approve a new federal tax system by July of the same year. This legislation has already been passed twice by the House of Representatives, first in 1998 by a vote of 219-209 and then in 2000 by a vote of 229-187.
“Republican or Democrat, there is wide consensus that the tax code is badly broken,” Goodlatte continued. “The recent fiscal cliff debate put on display just how flawed the tax code really is in America. The Tax Code Termination Act forces Congress to finally address fundamental tax reform and paves the way for a much-needed overhaul of the today’s tax system. Whichever tax system is adopted, the main goal should be to create a simpler, pro-growth tax code that works for American families and businesses.”
The Tax Code Termination Act has been referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means for further consideration.
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