The FairTax Book
Encyclopedia
The FairTax Book is a non-fiction
book by libertarian
radio
talk show
host Neal Boortz
and Congressman
John Linder
, published on August 2, 2005, as a tool to increase public support and understanding for the FairTax
plan. Released by ReganBooks
, the hardcover
version held the #1 spot on the New York Times Best Seller list
for the last two weeks of August 2005 and remained in the top ten for seven weeks. The paperback reprint of the book in May 2006 contains additional information and an afterword
. It also spent several weeks on the New York Times Best Seller list. Boortz stated that he donates his share of the proceeds to charity
to promote the book.
The book was published as a companion to the Fair Tax Act of 2005, which was a bill
in the 109th United States Congress
for changing tax laws to replace the Internal Revenue Service
(IRS) and all federal
income taxes
(including AMT
), payroll taxes
(including Social Security and Medicare taxes
), corporate taxes
, capital gains tax
es, gift tax
es, and estate taxes
with a national retail sales tax
, to be levied once at the point of purchase on all new goods and services. The proposal also calls for an advance monthly tax rebate to household
s of citizens and legal resident aliens, to "untax" purchases up to the poverty level. The bill was reintroduced in January 2007 as the Fair Tax Act of 2007.
The sequel to The FairTax Book, FairTax: The Truth: Answering the Critics, was released by HarperCollins
on February 12, 2008. The book was published as a follow up to answer questions and respond to critics of the FairTax plan, and achieved #4 on the New York Times Best Seller list for the week of March 2, 2008 for paperback nonfiction.
Non-fiction
Non-fiction is the form of any narrative, account, or other communicative work whose assertions and descriptions are understood to be fact...
book by libertarian
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
talk show
Talk show
A talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....
host Neal Boortz
Neal Boortz
Neal A. Boortz, Jr. is an American Libertarian radio host, author, and political commentator. His nationally syndicated talk show, The Neal Boortz Show, airs throughout the United States on Dial Global . It is ranked seventh in overall listeners, with 4.25+ million per week...
and Congressman
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
John Linder
John Linder
John Elmer Linder is the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 1993 until 2011. He is a member of the Republican Party.Linder announced that he would retire from Congress at the end of the 111th Congress....
, published on August 2, 2005, as a tool to increase public support and understanding for the FairTax
FairTax
The FairTax is a tax reform proposal for the federal government of the United States that would replace all federal taxes on personal and corporate income with a single broad national consumption tax on retail sales. The Fair Tax Act would apply a tax once at the point of purchase on all new goods...
plan. Released by ReganBooks
ReganBooks
ReganBooks was an American bestselling imprint or division of HarperCollins book publishing house , headed by editor and publisher Judith Regan, started in 1994 and ended in late 2006. During its existence, Regan was called, by LA Weekly, "the world's most successful publisher". The division...
, the hardcover
Hardcover
A hardcover, hardback or hardbound is a book bound with rigid protective covers...
version held the #1 spot on the New York Times Best Seller list
New York Times Best Seller list
The New York Times Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. It is published weekly in The New York Times Book Review magazine, which is published in the Sunday edition of The New York Times and as a stand-alone publication...
for the last two weeks of August 2005 and remained in the top ten for seven weeks. The paperback reprint of the book in May 2006 contains additional information and an afterword
Afterword
An afterword is a literary device that is often found at the end of a piece of literature. It generally covers the story of how the book came into being, or of how the idea for the book was developed....
. It also spent several weeks on the New York Times Best Seller list. Boortz stated that he donates his share of the proceeds to charity
Charitable organization
A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization . It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization (NPO). It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A...
to promote the book.
Legislation
Legislation is law which has been promulgated by a legislature or other governing body, or the process of making it...
in the 109th United States Congress
109th United States Congress
The One Hundred Ninth United States Congress was the legislative branch of the United States, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives, from January 3, 2005 to January 3, 2007, during the fifth and sixth years of George W. Bush's presidency. House members...
for changing tax laws to replace the Internal Revenue Service
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
(IRS) and all federal
Federal government of the United States
The federal government of the United States is the national government of the constitutional republic of fifty states that is the United States of America. The federal government comprises three distinct branches of government: a legislative, an executive and a judiciary. These branches and...
income taxes
Income tax in the United States
In the United States, a tax is imposed on income by the Federal, most states, and many local governments. The income tax is determined by applying a tax rate, which may increase as income increases, to taxable income as defined. Individuals and corporations are directly taxable, and estates and...
(including AMT
Alternative Minimum Tax
The Alternative Minimum Tax is an income tax imposed by the United States federal government on individuals, corporations, estates, and trusts. AMT is imposed at a nearly flat rate on an adjusted amount of taxable income above a certain threshold . This exemption is substantially higher than the...
), payroll taxes
Federal Insurance Contributions Act tax
Federal Insurance Contributions Act tax is a United States payroll tax imposed by the federal government on both employees and employers to fund Social Security and Medicare —federal programs that provide benefits for retirees, the disabled, and children of deceased workers...
(including Social Security and Medicare taxes
Federal Insurance Contributions Act tax
Federal Insurance Contributions Act tax is a United States payroll tax imposed by the federal government on both employees and employers to fund Social Security and Medicare —federal programs that provide benefits for retirees, the disabled, and children of deceased workers...
), corporate taxes
Corporate tax in the United States
Corporate tax is imposed in the United States at the Federal, most state, and some local levels on the income of entities treated for tax purposes as corporations. Federal tax rates on corporate taxable income vary from 15% to 35%. State and local taxes and rules vary by jurisdiction, though many...
, capital gains tax
Capital gains tax
A capital gains tax is a tax charged on capital gains, the profit realized on the sale of a non-inventory asset that was purchased at a lower price. The most common capital gains are realized from the sale of stocks, bonds, precious metals and property...
es, gift tax
Gift tax
A gift tax is a tax imposed on the gratuitous transfer of ownership of property. The United States Internal Revenue Service says a gift is "Any transfer to an individual, either directly or indirectly, where full consideration is not received in return."When a taxable gift in the form of cash,...
es, and estate taxes
Estate tax in the United States
The estate tax in the United States is a tax imposed on the transfer of the "taxable estate" of a deceased person, whether such property is transferred via a will, according to the state laws of intestacy or otherwise made as an incident of the death of the owner, such as a transfer of property...
with a national retail sales tax
Sales tax
A sales tax is a tax, usually paid by the consumer at the point of purchase, itemized separately from the base price, for certain goods and services. The tax amount is usually calculated by applying a percentage rate to the taxable price of a sale....
, to be levied once at the point of purchase on all new goods and services. The proposal also calls for an advance monthly tax rebate to household
Household
The household is "the basic residential unit in which economic production, consumption, inheritance, child rearing, and shelter are organized and carried out"; [the household] "may or may not be synonymous with family"....
s of citizens and legal resident aliens, to "untax" purchases up to the poverty level. The bill was reintroduced in January 2007 as the Fair Tax Act of 2007.
The sequel to The FairTax Book, FairTax: The Truth: Answering the Critics, was released by HarperCollins
HarperCollins
HarperCollins is a publishing company owned by News Corporation. It is the combination of the publishers William Collins, Sons and Co Ltd, a British company, and Harper & Row, an American company, itself the result of an earlier merger of Harper & Brothers and Row, Peterson & Company. The worldwide...
on February 12, 2008. The book was published as a follow up to answer questions and respond to critics of the FairTax plan, and achieved #4 on the New York Times Best Seller list for the week of March 2, 2008 for paperback nonfiction.
External links
- Excerpt from The Fair Tax Book (Official publisher web page)
- Excerpt from FairTax: The Truth (Official publisher web page)
- Neal Boortz Website
- John Linder's FairTax Site
- John Linder's Congress Site
- FairTax.org - Americans For Fair Taxation