Becomes 59th Member to Oppose a Value-Added Tax

WASHINGTON — Congressman Jerry Costello (D-IL) became the 59th member of the U.S. House to join ATR’s Anti-Value Added Tax (VAT) Caucus. This is the largest that the Anti-VAT Caucus has been since the mid-1990’s. ATR’s anti-VAT caucus is a voluntary affiliation of members of Congress who believe that a VAT is bad tax policy.

A value-added tax differs from a sales tax in that the value-added method places a tax on each stage of production. This allows the government to raise taxes without the full knowledge of the consumer. Since the mid-1960’s, Europe has seen a tax increase of almost 50% due to the value-added tax, while the tax levels in the United States have remained nearly constant.

“’VAT, or a VAT by any other name, is French for “big government,” said ATR President Grover Norquist. “Before the VAT plague descended upon Europe, it had a competitive tax burden relative to the United States.”

The ATR Anti-VAT Caucus seeks to protect citizens from the ease with which government is able to raise taxes under the radar through a value added tax. The caucus is a long-standing ATR project currently chaired by Congressman Wally Herger (R-CA). Prior chairs have included Tom Delay and Dick Armey.

“ATR is pleased to see the resurgence of the anti-VAT caucus, and is thrilled to see such strong interest in Congress,” continued Norquist. “Being saddled with a jobs and growth-killing VAT is too high a price to pay for tax reform, Social Security personal accounts, or any other worthy reform initiative.”