In a press conference timed to coincide with the 20th anniversary of President Reagan’s signing the last major tax reform act into law, former Sen. Bill Bradley, D-N.J., and Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., issued a call for another tax reform push.Wyden has introduced his Fair Flat Tax Act in the Senate, which includes provisions to lower tax rates and broaden the overall tax base. The legislation would allow taxpayers to file their returns on a simplified, single-page 1040 form; collapse individual tax brackets from the current six down to just three; and set a single, flat corporate rate. The bill would also end the alternative minimum tax and contains a unique provision to provide a refundable 10-percent tax credit for every taxpayer’s state and local taxes -- a benefit for taxpayers who don’t itemize.
Wyden said in a statement that his intention is “not to soak the rich,” but to allow taxpayers to accumulate wealth on a level playing field by creating as simple a tax code as possible.
Congressman Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill., has sponsored a companion bill in the House of Representatives.
Bradley was the author of legislation that was a model for the 1986 Tax Reform Act and has remained an advocate for a fairer and simpler tax code.
