You are having a political debate with a friend. The discussion centers on taxation You show your friend some data from your economics textbook that suggests that the average American paid about $8,500 in federal income tax in 2007.Your friend says, "If $8,500 per person is what it takes to run this country, then I think that it would be much simpler if we just billed each American $8,500 and eliminated the complex tax code."
Is this type of tax supported by the "ability-to-pay" principle of tax equity? Is it vertically equitable? Is it horizontally equitable?