Kerby Anderson

Tax day this year landed on April 18, but I took the time to remind my listeners that the more important day was April 23. That is Tax Freedom Day. According to the Tax Foundation, that is the day when the average American has paid all of his or her taxes (federal, state, and local). Of course, this varies by state. Tax Freedom Day for people in Mississippi lands on April 5 but doesn’t come until May 21 for people living in Connecticut.

There is another day that is important. That is Cost of Government Day that not only counts all the taxes but the cost of mandatory federal, state, and local regulations. Last year, the Cost of Government Day did not arrive until July 6. In other words, you spend more than half of year (186 days) working to pay what the government demands in taxes and regulations.

President Trump and Congress are working to reform the tax code, which reads like a foreign language to most Americans. How complex is the tax code? In his book, A Fine Mess, T.R. Reid provides this example: “Enter 6 percent of the smaller of line 40 or the value of your Archer MSAs on December 31, 2015, including 2015 contributions made in 2016. Include this amount on Form 1040, line 58A or Form 1040NR, line 56B.”

How many pages in the tax code? Some say it is 70,000 pages long, but that is actually The Standard Federal Tax Reporter that also includes legislative history. The actual tax code by itself is about 2,600 pages. Either number is overwhelming and perhaps the best argument for why we need to reform the tax code.