Tax Code Reform: Wait 'Till Next Year!

With a planned overhaul of Social Security and pressing budget issues occupying center stage during the onset of the second Bush administration term, the president's planned reform of the tax code would most likely be pushed back at least one year. According to the Washington Post, the president plans to name a panel to examine the current tax policy but reportedly will assign the Treasury Department to monitor the panel's progress. The report said that Treasury Secretary John Snow would most likely recommend incremental changes to the tax code, rather than more dramatic reforms such as supplanting it with a "flat tax" or national sales tax. A White House spokeswoman, however, maintained that overhauling the tax code remains a priority.