This might be a bit out of the blue but for some time now I have been wondering why we taxpayers are not allowed to have some say about where our income tax dollars are spent.
Why would it not be possible to divide government spending into four or five rough categories and to offer the taxpayer the right to alter the percentage given over to a particular segment of that spending.
For example, if there were five categories of spending the default position would give 20 per cent of your income tax money to each category and one could tick off that option in a check box.
But, if you were able to tell the government that you wished your money to go largely to the military, you could write in a larger percentage, perhaps as much as 80 per cent to go to that spending priority.
There would have be a default minimum position for each category but by the exercise of choice the taxpayer would be empowered to strongly influence government policy.
This kind of control of spending would certainly affect the government’s priorities in a serious way and would better reflect the will of the electorate.
Given the sophistication of today’s computerized tax returns I can see no technical reason for such a tax form to be assembled and presented as I have suggested.
Bob Pellow
Parksville
