Jerry Moran

This week, IRS Commissioner John Koskinen told Congress that simplifying the tax code would significantly reduce costs to the government. Despite possible savings, some are suggesting more spending to patch the status quo, for which the agency requested a budget increase of $530 million this year.

You don’t need an accountant to do the math on this one: Instead of spending millions in an attempt to fix the IRS, we should abolish the agency through comprehensive tax reform.

Congress has long resorted to piecemeal fixes to the tax code instead of a complete and necessary overhaul.

I’m hopeful that with a new administration, Congress will have an opportunity to replace our convoluted tax code with a common-sense system that is simpler and more growth-oriented.

I believe the best replacement is the FairTax, a flat national consumption tax that would effectively render the IRS obsolete.

Blame Congress for tax complexity: Our view

I introduced the FairTax in January 2015 with Sen. David Perdue of Georgia. It would repeal all federal personal income taxes, corporate income taxes, payroll taxes, capital gains taxes and gift and estate taxes, and replace them with a revenue-neutral, personal consumption tax on all retail sales of new goods and services.

The FairTax would end the annual frustration and confusion around filing federal income taxes. To fund important programs, such as Social Security, taxes would still be collected as part of the retail sales tax. By eliminating the payroll tax, the FairTax would allow low- and middle-income workers to keep their entire paychecks.

The FairTax is a significant step in the direction of individual freedom, a fundamental concept of our nation’s founding. With no tax on savings or investment, it would create more jobs and allow Americans to keep the entirety of their income, putting individuals back in charge of their own finances rather than the government.

Under the FairTax, all Americans — regardless of their economic status — would be on equal footing and have greater freedom.

Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., is a member of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee with jurisdiction over the IRS.