This article is the first part of a two-part examination of the contentious issue of how state governments' provision of goods and services to the public should be taxed under a VAT.

Supercommittee Republicans offered a plan to eliminate tax preferences and reduce tax rates, as in the 1986 bipartisan tax reform. They argued that high tax rates would squelch economic growth.  They didn't make the case that their proposals would also address income inequality. But Paul Ryan, in a paper based largely on a CBO analysis of income trends between 1979 and 2007, has done so.

As critics see it, the loss of our common culture is a result not of cultural changes but of shifts in policy and the economy. There are two problems with this line of argument.

The good news is that much of Santorum's plan is centered on lowering taxes. The bad news is that much of his tax relief is either welfare in disguise, or social engineering.

At this AEI event, Representative Tom Petri (R-Wisc.) will discuss the combined impact of low-income tax credits on work incentives.

Approximately 140 million federal tax returns were filed in the weeks and months leading up to April 18 this year. We know from past years that over one-third of taxpayers will file "non-taxable returns," meaning that they will not owe any federal income tax.

The maze of tax credits that are typically available to low-income individuals under the tax code needs simplifying.

Replacing all of the seven different tax credits allowed under the current tax code with a simple policy holds significant promise.