Nothing new: System unfair, 60% in poll say

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Taxes rise and fall from one administration to the next, but the unpopularity of the income tax system is constant.
An Ipsos Poll finds that almost six of 10 people say the system is unfair, a percentage virtually unchanged from two decades ago.
The perception of unfairness is spread fairly evenly across income groups -- though their reasons may differ. More than half of those who make less than $50,000 a year said it's unfair, and more than six in 10 of those who make more than $50,000 felt that way.
In fact, unhappiness with the tax system was spread fairly evenly across income groups, age groups and education levels.
A majority of people said the middle class, the self-employed and small businesses pay too much in taxes, the poll found. And they think those with high incomes and big businesses don't pay enough.
The survey was conducted in the days before the mid-April deadline for filing income tax returns.
Complaints
Some complain the income tax burden remains unfairly placed on those with high incomes -- saying the top 5 percent pay an inordinate share. And some grouse about the wealthy getting too many tax breaks.
When the government held hearings almost a year ago on how to make the tax code simpler and more fair, complaints ranged from overly complicated laws to inequitable tax breaks to undue influence of lobbyists.
Dissatisfaction remains high after numerous changes in tax law since the late 1980s.
More than half in the poll, 58 percent, said middle-income families pay too much income tax. People were almost as likely, 54 percent, to say that about low-income families.
The poll of 1,005 adults was conducted April 11-13 by Ipsos, an international polling firm, and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.