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                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, April 14, 1993                   TAG: 9304140329
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A-8   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

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FLAT-RATE TAX IS ADVOCATED

I HAVE worked all my life and am presently paying taxes of 50 percent on my Social Security. How can the administration justify raising taxes on Social Security another 35 percent? This is greater than the taxes on earned income!

I feel the government is putting the cart before the horse. To balance the budget, freeze all entities of government and cut the salaries of Congress back to the 1985 pay rate.

Since they are proposing a change in the tax law, I suggest they also consider:

There are more people in the $20,000-to-$100,000 income bracket than the $100,000-to-$500,000 bracket. People in the lower-income bracket will be carrying the load while those with more than $100,000 will continue to have the same benefits as they have now. Regardless of income, the first $20,000 should be tax-exempt. For more than $20,000, I suggest a flat rate of 1 percent, 2 percent or 5 percent for everyone - whatever it takes to balance the budget and give us the money needed for social programs as well.

These changes would allow for reduction in government cost, the size of the Internal Revenue Service could be greatly reduced, court costs could be reduced and paying taxes would become a much simpler task. SAM P. NACKLEY ROANOKE

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