South By North Strategies, Ltd.

James Galbraith of the University of Texas testifies before Congress about “sensible tax reform.”

Tax law serves two broad goals: the regulation of effective demand and the pursuit of public purpose. The Tax Reform Act of 1986 was gave us an income tax structure that is viable for the long run. But its purposes are not ours. We face four pressing priorities: to create jobs, to change how we produce and use energy, to restructure our financial sector, and to curtail the pernicious power of a small number of wealthy persons – our new American oligarchs – who have taken undue advantage of past tax reforms. A shift of the tax burden away from labor, onto energy, and onto accumulated wealth – with the philanthropic escape clause – would help give us back a healthier, more egalitarian, and more democratic society in future years.