In response to my post about PETA’s proposed meat tax, Sally over at Living Without Meat had this to say:
What she doesn’t share with us is if the tax deal goes through, will she go back to her formerly meat-free diet?
That’s right: I used to be a vegetarian. I was meat free from about 1991 to 1994. I started eating meat again around the time I moved to Philadelphia (maybe I should give that some thought). But I digress.
Sally’s question is a fair one. Would I, in fact, be willing to give up meat in exchange for a tax credit? Maybe. I guess it would depend on the amount in question.
You see, tax policy works exactly that way. The government creates policy based on what it believes provides an incentive for “desired behavior” (mortgage interest, but not rent, is deductible because the government wants to encourage home ownership) and a disincentive for “bad behavior” (cigarette taxes are meant to discourage smoking). And it is often effective. As gas taxes increase, people drive less. As cigarette taxes rise, people smoke less.
Given that’s the way that tax policy works, I thought Sally’s question was a fair question for everyone. So, I created a poll.
Assuming that offering proof would not be onerous, which of the following would you give up in exchange for $1000 tax credit?
Remember, that’s a credit, not a deduction (the main distinction between a credit and a deduction is that the credit is subtracted from the tentative tax due to IRS, as opposed to a mere reduction in gross income, so depending on your tax bracket, that could be significant). And, since I’m dictator for purposes of this poll, I will make it income independent (no phase-out) and applicable to all adults over the age of 18 in one household.
And no fair choosing something that you don’t do anyway. If you’re not a smoker, don’t choose cigarettes! That’s cheesy. It’s like my husband giving up watching Oprah for Lent…
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And psst, if you choose “other” or “nothing”, I’d love to read your comments.
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Hey, if you enjoyed the article, digg it. Thanks!
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