Republican Buddy Carter introduces bill to eliminate IRS and income tax — but replace it with 23% national sales tax

Rep. Earl “Buddy” Carter (R-Ga.) introduced the FairTax Act of 2025, aimed at abolishing the Internal Revenue Service.

Not only would the new act eliminate the IRS if passed, but it would also repeal the federal income tax.

A fact sheet from Carter’s office sent to the Washington Examiner stated that the legislation would capture “the underground economy, tourism dollars, and purchases made by illegal immigrants.”

This would allegedly be accomplished by implementing a 23% national sales tax, with some exceptions.

‘As long as they’re here, they should be taxed.’

“The FairTax will have widespread benefits throughout our economy, not the least of which is forcing illegal immigrants to pay their fair share in taxes,” Carter told the Examiner. “This will eliminate instances of illegal immigrants using taxpayer-funded resources without paying into the system while also empowering Americans to choose their tax rate.”

It is unclear what the congressman meant by Americans choosing their tax rate.

The Georgia representative reinforced that he still supports the remigration of illegal aliens at the same time.

“I’m all for the repatriation of illegal immigrants, but as long as they’re here, they should be taxed,” Carter added.

Taxing illegal immigrants is not specifically mentioned in the act, however, as it would be seemingly impossible to implement on an individual basis.

Under the FairTax Act of 2025, there would some exceptions for the new sales tax. Exceptions included the sale of used and “intangible property” and property purchased for business, government, export, or investment purposes.

The law would also carve out the opportunity for “lawful U.S. residents” to receive a monthly sales tax rebate based on a specific set of criteria related to income and family size.

The bill was originally introduced in 2023 but did not move.

The summary of that bill stated that the tax rate (starting at 23%) would be adjusted “in subsequent years.”

At the same time, the bill “terminates the national sales tax if the Sixteenth Amendment to the Constitution (authorizing an income tax) is not repealed within seven years after the enactment of this bill.”

This would mean that the 23% tax is effectively a seven-year tax that theoretically results in no sales tax at all after that period.

The bill’s original text made several claims that the federal income tax stymies economic growth and “has reduced the standard of living of the American public.”

Blaze News contacted the Trump administration transition team for comment on the legislation; this article will be updated with any applicable responses.

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