Tax method will provide equal, affordable education

Stanley Fischer's letter to the editor, "Proposed Tax Plan Anything But 'Fair' to Average Resident" (Aug. 17), contains many statements with which I totally agree. He states that many average citizens, under my "fair-tax" plan, will pay approximately $1,167 more than what they are presently paying. That is exactly the purpose of the "fair-tax" plan.

First, consider what Franklin Delano Roosevelt said in his address at Worcester, Mass., on Oct. 21, 1936 - "Here is my principle: Taxes shall be levied according to one's ability to pay. That is the only American principle." Now, consider that today some people earning approximately $18,000 (widows, let's say, left with a house and paying $6,000 in property taxes) are paying 22 percent of their income to education taxes. Also today, other people earning $100,000 are paying only 4 percent of their income toward education taxes. Is that fair? Of course not. In fact, if the "fair tax" goes into effect, my family will be paying more than what we're paying now. The only people who will be complaining will be some who have not paid their fair share for lo these many years. I'm sure that many who will be paying more will not complain, since they will recognize it's their fair share.

The 5-percent rate is based on past records. In 1968 the total income for all residents in the state of New Jersey was $38 billion, while the cost for education was $1.1 billion. In 2004 the total income for all residents in the state was $385 billion, while the cost for education was $17.5 billion. This broad-based tax method will make it possible for all children in the state to obtain an equal and sufficient education that is affordable for all of us.

The "fair-tax" method will reduce your property taxes by 55-67 percent, depending on the town in which you live. The amount of money you will pay toward primary and secondary education will depend on your income. "Fair" is fair.

Frank J. Coury

East Brunswick