CBS News reports that 50% of tax filers pay a professional to prepare their taxes and file their return. 2. I actually do believe there is a "fat tax" because there is no other logical reason for it. He would also stop hiring obese people. They either buy a similar drink that is untaxed or they don’t buy a drink at all,” says Mytton. Yet they are the same price. A tax on unhealthy foods needs to go beyond just saturated fats. There is growing evidence that sugar poses a serious health risk, so should we not treat it like alcohol and tobacco? One recent proposal came from Republican U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, a presidential candidate in 2016. In March 2016 the UK government announced that a new sugar tax on the soft drinks industry would be introduced. The BBC has written a good explanation of how the sugar tax will work in the UK. The elephant in the room, so to speak, is tax. 1. For the average child born today, there is a 50/50 chance, if lifestyles do not change, that they will develop Type 2 diabetes or other physical diseases and conditions that are associated with being overweight. “These effects don’t really happen with drinks as the economic data suggests. “There was great uncertainty in 1969, whether we could have any income tax at all and there was pretty much a conclusion if we did have one, it would have to be flat rate,” says Charlie Wheeler, former longtime Statehouse reporter for the Chicago Sun-Times and current director of the Public Affairs Reporting Program at the University of Illinois Springfield. What would happen if there was just one tax rate for most Americans? Both vices have considerable negative individual and societal costs, and as such, are heavily taxed in many countries. So what is to be done? Flickr/Mailloux . Some American politicians have advocated a flat federal tax system. If they decide to do so, they should focus on content, not proxies like drink volume or sales value. This is not a tax on fat people. There Should A Tax on Junk Food. Your Council Tax bill - how to work it out, who has to pay, discounts and exemptions for students and disabled people, second homes, empty properties, paying the bill About 7 in 10 Americans worry about preparing their taxes, with the top concern being that a mistake could trigger an audit. But not all foods that are high in fat are considered unhealthy, which may challenge the notion of imposing a blanket tax, some food policy experts said. It would reduce tax preparation costs. Proponents for the fat tax argue that fatty foods should be treated like cigarettes and alcohol. Albert Einstein said that “Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not one bit simpler.” Good advice for people who want to redesign tax systems. It penalizes low-income earners Low-income earners, well, earn much less than others. I understand every second person has another argument on this topic but I strongly agree that we should tax junk food as everyday many average looking people are being told that there is a chronicle illness living inside them and might have been from when they where young. There are 23 million workers that are not paying federal taxes .They are not qualifying for tax cuts that have been championed by the Obama administration. A flat sales tax is exactly in proportion to this third factor, a lavish consumer lifestyle. Would a Flat Tax Be Fairer? In other words, my ramblings on the ol' blog are free advice and you know what they say about getting what you pay for. According to Dictionary.com, the fat tax is “a tax imposed on or proposed for high-fat or otherwise unhealthy foodstuffs”. Sugar Tax: Should we have one? If someone really can’t afford it, then the most that should be done is basic literacy, math, and other skills needed to survive, not a 12 year 40 hour a week regimen! Similarly, mentions of products or services are not endorsements. As it says in the title we are taxing JUNK-FOOD. The 2XL shirt is two dollars more. One Flat Tax Proposal . 2. By David Leonhardt ... if there weren’t legal issues, he would not only stop hiring smokers. A flat tax (short for flat-rate tax) is a tax with a single rate on the taxable amount, after accounting for any deductions or exemptions from the tax base. Fat Tax. Policymakers must weigh all those concerns when considering whether to tax sugar. The fact that they have to spend on the same necessities are more well-placed folk is also an issue as when necessities expense is taken out of the picture, low … No one likes paying it and there are disparities and complications that should be fixed, but you don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. List of Cons of Flat Tax. A government inspector is not going to go around with a weighing scale, dishing out tax penalties for people who tip over the scale. 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