If tax reformers are continually frustrated in their labors, it's
no wonder. Reese, the legislative director of a group called
Taxation with Representation, provides a step-by-step account of
the process by which tax legislation is shaped, mis-shaped,
side-tracked, and enacted; and what he depicts is a formidable
series of obstacles to reform. In his view, the Office of Tax
Analysis of the Treasury Department is composed of would-be
reformers, since staff members are trained economists representing
no special interests. As economists, they're aware of the money
wasted through the current system of ostensibly progressive
taxation which in practice contains enough loopholes to create an
unfair tax burden and a significant loss of revenue. By contrast,
the Treasury's Office of Tax Legislative Counsel is composed mainly
of lawyers, who translate tax policy into legalese: like lawyers
everywhere, they identify with their client, in this case the
government, which often leads them to search for the simplest
solutions and the ones which will cause the least governmental
disruption. In addition, while the OTA economists stay on, the OTLC
lawyers are only passing through on their way to lucrative legal
careers, another factor which disposes them toward the interest
they will come to serve (and also limits their expertise). With
this comparison, Reese begins an analytical study of the biases and
political connections of those involved in the tax process. What he
discovers is that, outside of the OTA, there is no strong
representation for tax reform. In the House and Senate, the
relevant committees are run by politicians wedded to special
interests and staffed by more lawyers, while the Administration is
perpetually faced with the political costs of real reform (i.e.,
the loss of big contributions from the big money-holders). Despite
the overwhelming odds, Reese takes a stab at suggestions for
reform, but he is hamstrung by his identification of reform with
economic expertise - he has, after all, shown that the whole
process is thoroughly political. Still, the stiff-upper-lip ending
notwithstanding, Reese's history of tax reform and log of the tax
process are comprehensive and comprehensible, and especially
important in another election year. (Kirkus Reviews)
General
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