Taxes are a controversial topic. Almost everywhere in the world requires you to pay taxes. What you pay, and how much you pay though all depends on where you live. In Illinois and America as a whole, taxes are a huge problem for Americans. Tax rates can be really high while most necessities are taxed. I personally believe that taxes are necessary for the economy and shouldn’t be removed, but that’s not to say that there aren’t a lot of issues about taxes. I will be discussing the problems I, and possibly many Americans, have, and what I believe can solve these issues.
What are taxes though? Taxes are money that comes out of anything you pay or earn that goes to the government. One thing I hate about taxes is that anything you buy can be taxed. Groceries can be taxed, clothes can be taxed, and even diapers can be taxed. Almost all of the basic necessities that you need in order to survive are taxed. Owning a home gets you annually taxed, which for some families can be very high. For an average home in Illinois which is around $250,000, you have to pay around $4,500 a year just to continue living in it. It’s really unfair for most Americans who have to pay for both necessities, which are still expensive due to inflation, and taxes on them.
On top of having to pay all of these kinds of taxes for everything we need, the tax rates are still extremely high! An article by Katelyn Washington on Kiplinger(Article) describes the tax rates in Illinois on most products. Starting with sales taxes, a tax on everything you buy. Anything you buy already includes a state sales tax of 6.25%, not including any local taxes. Sales taxes in some areas can get as high as 11.50%! As a reference, if you buy $100 worth of groceries, you are forced to pay $11.50 for taxes. It’s extremely unfair that we already have to pay a default amount of taxes on sales, and then more depending on where you live. On top of that, property taxes are also really high with Illinois having the second highest property tax rate in America. You have to pay 1.83% taxes for your home a year. For reference, buying a $250,000 home will make you pay around $4,500 a year just from taxes.
One of my final complaints I have on taxes is that the money that we actually give doesn’t get spent well. What do I mean by this? Tax money is supposed to go back to the community through education funding, road repairs, medicare, and more. From personal experience, I have seen roads or potholes not get fixed for years. I’ve seen videos of citizens having to fill potholes themselves in order to fix the problem. We pay all of these taxes for better roads just to have to resort to us fixing the problems ourselves. If tax money goes towards an issue that the community ends up having to fix themselves, what’s the point in putting money in that issue?
I’ve talked a lot about the issues I have with taxes, but what can we, or the government do to solve them, or improve them? For my first issue about the different kinds of taxes, I personally believe that all of the taxes we have are appropriate, just what gets taxed should change. I believe that basic necessities shouldn’t get taxed such as clothes, food, water, any baby supplies, etc. Having to pay more money than you already have to just to be able to eat are some reasons why people eat the same cheap foods everyday. Being able to buy groceries without worrying about taxes would help a lot of people eat better.
My second complaint was about how much taxes are. I believe that a majority of these taxes should be lowered. For example, the state sales tax should lower due to how much local taxes can be put on as well. We can go from a 6.25% state sales tax to a rate lower such as a 3% sales rate. This allows people who live in cities or towns with a high local sales tax rate to have some relief. Another example would be for property taxes. In Illinois, you have to pay 1.83% for property tax as I said. I would say it would be more than fair to lower that down to at least 1%. This would allow more families to be able to own and maintain a home while not worrying about paying a large amount in taxes. Overall, I believe taxes should be lower since most Americans have to constantly deal with rising taxes and prices due to inflation.
My last complaint was about where the spending of tax money was going. My solution in order to fix a majority of roads or at least acknowledge it is by each city to do a roadside surveillance of some kind every 4 months. This would bring attention to the main issue of broken roads or potholes being everywhere. It would allow the funding to go towards the roads, and for workers to actually fix it rather than the citizens.
In the end though, tax rates could all really depend on the people that run the country. Whether they are corrupt and want more money, or they are just ignorant, we can still make a difference. We can protest against these high taxes. Taxes are, yes, important for the economy, but I believe that we’ve crossed the point where there is just too much for us to handle. Food is getting too expensive, owning a home can only be a dream for some people, and so many more problems. If we speak up, we could get the help we need whether it comes from them lowering taxes or us getting more help. If we do nothing, taxes can only get worse whether it is from inflation or from harsher tariffs or anything like it. Taxes can be good for the economy, but it becomes a problem when many Americans can’t pay for necessities due to taxes. I hope that in the future, this problem can get better and better, but if things go the way they are now with tariff problems, I could only hope right now for a better future.
Raul Hernandez – Carmel Catholic High School – DMSF Class of 2029
Photo Credit: geralt – Pixabay