True Cost Economics is currently creating a sizable ruckus in the academic world, and its value as a system of thought is starting to be recognized by the economic establishment. -- Brendan Themes Go there >>True Cost Economics
Combined with the fact that sales tax is tied to consumption rather than income, this leads some to the conclusion that low-income individuals and families pay a greater proportion of their incomes in sales taxes, therefore sales tax is regressive. You're supposed to read regressive as unfair.
Progressive and Regressive Taxes. A progressive tax is defined as a tax whose rate increases as the payer's income increases. That is, individuals who earn high incomes have a greater proportion of their incomes taken to pay the tax. A regressive tax, on the other hand, is one whose rate increases as the payer's income decreases. I'm beginning to suspect these terms were invented merely to make the U.S.' income tax appear more attractive. Income tax is the only tax in the U.S. whose rate is tied directly to income.