The national debt is growing and the government is unable to keep pace with the current progressive tax system in the United States. One solution to America's debt problem is to move to a flat tax system. Moving to a flat tax system would simplify the tax process, make taxes fair and uniform, and allow the government to reduce the United States national debt. A flat tax system is one that taxes each individual the same percentage. This system is unlike any other system the United States has experienced before. American Tax History In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, the United States taxed a few products to generate revenue for the federal government. In 1817, the government removed all taxes and relied solely on customs duties on imported goods. The United States passed its first modern tax to support the Civil War; the tax was a progressive income tax. With the first income tax came the commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service. The government declared the income tax unconstitutional and later replaced it with a commodity tax. Then in 1916, the 16th Amendment legalized income taxation. Later, during World War II, the government began withholding wages to collect taxes to support the war effort. The Tax Reform Act of 1986 lowered the top tax rates. The Revenue Reconciliation Act of 1990 then increased the tax rate on the wealthy. “President Clinton signed the Revenue Reconciliation Act of 1993 into law” (History of the Income Tax, 2007). This included capital gains tax cuts, a child tax credit and an education incentive. President Bush then signed progressive tax cuts. The additional tax cuts reduced some of the top percentages and brought couples' average incomes to the same level...... middle of paper ...... April 30, 2011, at http ://www.heritage.org/Research/Commentary/2003/03/Russias-Flat-Tax-MiracleRoach, B. (2003, October). Progressive and regressive taxation in the United States: who really pays (and doesn't pay) their fair share?. GDAE Tufts Publications. Retrieved April 27, 2011, from ase.tufts.edu/gdae/pubs/wp/03-10-tax_incidence.pdfRussia to See 20-25% Loan Growth in 2011-cbank| Reuters. (November 24, 2010). Economic and financial news, latest American and international news | Reuters.com. Retrieved April 30, 2011 from http://www.reuters.com/article/2010/11/24/russia-cbank-loans-idUSLDE6AN1YL20101124SOI Tax Stats - Personnel Summary, by employment status, budget activity and selected personnel type . - Databook Table 30. (March 14, 2011). Internal Revenue Service. Retrieved April 26, 2011 from http://www.irs.gov/taxstats/article/0,,id=207735,00.html