Tax Simplification through Readability

A Look at Tax Law Complexity

Doug Barney, PhD, CPA, CMA, CFM, and Dan Tschopp, PhD, CPA, and Steve Wells, PhD, CPA, CFE, CMA

Ever since the tax law was introduced, there has been an outcry for simplification. But how can this be accomplished? The authors suggest writing simpler laws. Standard readability indices can be used to evaluate the tax law and illustrate the writing skills of its authors. The discussion below focuses on samples from the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) as written by Congress, the Treasury Regulations as promulgated by staff, and the IRS's guidance and instructions. Comparing all three sources on a single topic (capital gain)permits an evaluation of the readability of the laws and interpretations written by these government sources.