Senate votes against a value-added tax

Posted by Matt Holdridge on 04/16/10 1:31 PM





From the Washington Times:


Senators voted overwhelming Thursday to say they don't want to create a new value-added tax, or VAT, in a vote designed to take the wind out of an idea that had been circulating among policymakers for the last several weeks.

The 85-13 vote against a VAT was nonbinding, but it did put one chamber of Congress on record in opposition to adding the new tax just weeks before the first meeting of President Obama's debt commission, which is supposed to report back this year on how to bring the country's finances under control.

Six senators are part of that commission, and all six voted against a VAT, a type of consumption tax that's been adopted in Europe. If all six senators remain consistent in their opposition, it means a VAT could not be part of the commission's plans, because the president's rules say that any recommendations need support of 14 of the 18 members on the panel.

Trial balloons such as a VAT tax shouldn't be taken lightly. Leviathan has an appetite that cannot be satisfied and they'll continue to look for new and creative ways to consume your income. Keep an eye out.