Director, Commonwealth Policy Center

Today is tax day and if you haven't yet filed, there's still time.  For many, it's a painful reminder of just how much the government takes from our wallet. We pay state sales tax, local property tax and state and federal income tax. According to the American Tax Foundation, 31 percent of the nation’s income is collected in taxes: $3.3 trillion in federal taxes and $1.6 trillion in state and local taxes. That's $5.1 trillion! So how much is enough for the government anyway? It's necessary to pay taxes but our Founding Fathers designed government to be much smaller than what it is today. But this is only possible when personal responsibility is exercised by every citizen. Without personal responsibility, government will inevitably grow to meet needs. And when this happens, it of course means more taxes.