Foreseeing the debate over tax reform, The Congressional Institute commissioned Charlton Research, a San Francisco-based public opinion and strategy research firm, to conduct a series of focus groups and a National Issues Survey to identify the values, attitudes and opinions Americans hold with respect to taxes. Eighty-one percent of survey respondents believe the current tax system is unsustainable. Americans feel a loss of control because they don't believe a uniform set of standards apply to everyone. They believe the rich, the poor and the middle class are each treated differently by the tax system. The rich are seen as able to use loopholes to avoid paying taxes, while the poor are seen as the primary beneficiaries of the nation's spending programs.
Equality is a key value missing from the equation.
Seventy-one percent believe the tax system benefits the rich or the poor, but not the middle class. Sixty-six percent believe the current system is unfair. Effectiveness in a tax system and system of government is also very important to Americans. They believe the current tax system supports just the opposite. Fifty-seven percent believe the current system provides services to everyone, but do not feel they receive benefits proportionate to the amount of taxes they pay.