The 60 Second Update with

Congressman John Linder

3. Don't you have to repeal the Income Tax first so we don't end up with both forms of taxation?

While the FairTax does repeal all Federal income related taxes, it does not repeal the 16th Amendment. An income tax and a consumption tax at the same time would be, in my mind, the worst case scenario. Americans will not experience the many benefits of the FairTax if they are forced to also pay income taxes at the same time. As such, the FairTax now contains a sunset provision. This provision means that if the 16th Amendment is not repealed seven years after the implementation of the FairTax, then the FairTax will essentially be abolished. The text of H.R. 25 does not indicate what type of system it should be replaced with, and therefore, Congress would have to implement a new Federal system of taxation.

It has been suggested by some that H.R. 25 contain language to repeal the Sixteenth Amendment, however, the legislative procedure used to pass a constitutional amendment is significantly different than that of a simple piece of legislation. To become law, the FairTax needs a simple majority in the House and Senate and the signature of the President. A repeal of the Sixteenth Amendment requires the passage of a much stricter constitutional standard. A repeal of the Sixteenth Amendment would require a House Joint Resolution (H.J. Res), approval by two-thirds of the House and Senate, and three-quarters of the 50 states. As a logistical matter, repeal will simply take longer to achieve than FairTax enactment.

 Question 4. Without an Income Tax, wouldn't this create
an underground economy?