Social Policy

There is a debatable question of the extent to which the government should provide social welfare for federal, state, and local governments. There are consequences for a society that has a huge gap between the rich and the poor. The controversy revolves around the role the government should play in leveling this gap.

Taxes

Taxes are the major source of income for all levels of government. There are three basic types of personal taxes.

Progressive taxes - A progressive tax takes a larger percentage of income from high-income groups than from low-income groups. Progressive taxes are based on the concept of the ability to pay. The U.S. federal income tax is based on the progressive tax system.
Regressive taxes - A regressive tax takes a larger percentage of income from low-income groups than high-income groups.
Proportional taxes - With proportional taxes, each individual pays a fixed rate. The proportional tax takes the same percentage of income from all income groups.

Another debate is which type of tax should be used to gain revenue as well as what programs should be eliminated as a part of our social policy.

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