Payroll taxes

Chicago AM Sunday 23 September 2012

Voice of the People, Chicago Tribune

Gentlepeople:

A letter in the Voice of the People ["Like Scrooge" Sunday 23 September] says "Nearly two-thirds of these people still pay federal payroll taxes."

The Statistical Abstract of the United States says that 73% of all the taxes the federal government collects comes from wages withheld by employers - the employers write the actual checks on their bank accounts, not the employees.  Sure, the employer occasionally reminds the employees that if they weren't forced to do this under jail threat, they would have given the money to the employee.

Why don't a majority of the House of reps, 60 Senators, and the President change US Tax code from 'every employer making payment of wages shall deduct and withhold upon such wages a tax...' to 'every employer making payment of wages shall pay all wages to the employee....' The employer still calculates the tax, including a note to the employee: "Here is what the feds are expecting you personally to remit in 30 days."

This would be difficult to do, but returning the responsibility of writing monthly checks to fund the government to the 90% of voters who are wage earners would encourage much more carefull selection of who they elect to Congress.

Arnold H Nelson  Chicago IL 60640  ah_nelson@yahoo.com