CESQD—Taxes

Taxation With Representation
The Politics of Economics

Taxation With Representation is a flexible, cross-curricular, model legislature-based simulation that's designed to be used in both economics and government/civics classes. It focuses on the interplay between taxes and politics. Students draft tax bills, argue them in committees and in the full House or Senate where they are required to produce one compromise bill. Along the way, your students learn about the U.S. tax system, Democratic and Republican tax agendas, political pressure and how politics affects what economic measures get passed.

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Civics and Economics Standards Alignments
Civics Standards (National)
McRel
How Does the Government Established by the Constitution Embody the Purposes, Values, and Principles of American Democracy?
16	Understands the major responsibilities of the national government for domestic and foreign policy, and understands how government is financed through taxation.
20	Understands the roles of political parties, campaigns, elections, and associations and groups in American politics
21	Understands the formation and implementation of public policy.

Center for Civic Education
III	HOW DOES THE GOVERNMENT ESTABLISHED BY THE CONSTITUTION EMBODY THE PURPOSES, VALUES, AND PRINCIPLES OF AMERICAN DEMOCRACY?
	B	How is the national government organized and what does it do?
		3	Financing government through taxation. Students should be able to evaluate, take, and defend positions on issues regarding how government should raise money to pay for its operations and services.
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National Voluntary Economic Standards

#	Standard
1	Productive resources are limited. Therefore, people cannot have all the goods and services they want; as a result, they must choose some things and give up others.
2	Effective decision making requires comparing the additional costs of alternatives with the additional benefits. Most choices involve doing a little more or a little less of something; few choices are all-or-nothing decisions.
16	There is an economic role for government to play in a market economy whenever the benefits of a government policy outweigh its costs. Governments often provide for national defense, address environmental concerns, define and protect property rights, and attempt to make markets more competitive. Most government policies also redistribute income.
17	Costs of government policies sometimes exceed benefits. This may occur because of incentives facing voters, government officials, and government employees, because of actions by special interest groups that can impose costs on the general public, or because social goals other than economic efficiency are being pursued.

Samples and Downloads
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Table of Contents (web)	Table of Contents (PDF)
Teacher's Guide (Sample)	Student Instructions (Sample)
Sample Tax Bill