I need to pay higher taxes. To get to fiscal balance, I need to pay higher taxes. To fund the things I support, such as national health insurance, more Section 8 housing, and a robust military, I need to pay higher taxes. But I am not paying them alone--to pay more without others paying more is a gesture, and would not solve anything.
The federal government can get at me one of two ways: it can scale back or eliminate my deductions, or it can raise my rates. If my mortgage interest deduction goes away, for example, my federal tax liability would increase by around 10 percent; alternatively, the federal government could just charge me a ten percent surtax on income.
If my income is taxed, the impact on my desire to work is ambiguous. On the one hand, because the cost of leisure would fall, I would have an incentive to work less. On the other hand, if I want to restore my previous after tax standard of living, I would have an incentive to work more.
If you take away my mortgage interest deduction, however, the impact is not ambiguous--I will have an incentive to work more. Leisure is no less expensive (there is no substitution effect), but my desire to restore my previous income remains as before.
The federal government can get at me one of two ways: it can scale back or eliminate my deductions, or it can raise my rates. If my mortgage interest deduction goes away, for example, my federal tax liability would increase by around 10 percent; alternatively, the federal government could just charge me a ten percent surtax on income.
If my income is taxed, the impact on my desire to work is ambiguous. On the one hand, because the cost of leisure would fall, I would have an incentive to work less. On the other hand, if I want to restore my previous after tax standard of living, I would have an incentive to work more.
If you take away my mortgage interest deduction, however, the impact is not ambiguous--I will have an incentive to work more. Leisure is no less expensive (there is no substitution effect), but my desire to restore my previous income remains as before.
