94 Former U.S. War Tax Resisters Are Surveyed. Here’s What They Said.

I started summarizing the results of surveys that NWTRCC conducted over .

Three varieties of survey were distributed — one for current war tax resisters, one for former war tax resisters, and one for those who had never done any war tax resistance. , I summarized the survey of those who had never done tax resistance; I’ll summarize the responses of the 94 former resisters.

What sort of tax resistance did they engage in, and for how long?

Of the former resisters, 81.9% had resisted the federal excise tax on telephone service and 68.1% had resisted the federal income tax. They were also asked how many years they had participated in each variety of resistance:

phone taxincome tax
None18.1%31.9%
1 year4.3%10.6%
2 years8.5%10.6%
3 years10.6%17.0%
4 years9.6%3.2%
5 years11.7%7.4%
6 years4.3%3.2%
7 years0.0%0.0%
8 years1.1%2.1%
9 years1.1%1.1%
10 years6.4%4.3%
10+ years20.2%10.6%
Why did they resist taxes?

They were asked “What reasons best describe the motives for your previous WTR?” (they could choose more than one):

Wanted the military budget reduced70.2%
Religious or ethical conscience69.1%
Wanted to make a stronger statement52.1%
Wanted to end a specific war or military action or type of weaponry42.6%
Wanted to redirect taxes42.6%
Effective opposition strategy29.8%
Wanted to encourage more social services29.8%
Why did they stop resisting taxes?

They were asked “Why don’t you do WTR any longer?” (they could choose more than one):

IRS collected taxes40.4%
Family commitments38.3%
Felt ineffective23.4%
Too much trouble23.4%
Wanted to maintain job22.3%
Effect on credit7.4%
Felt like my statement was made6.4%
No longer opposed war0.0%
What consequences do they imagine?

They were asked “What are the two most likely consequences of WTR”:

Collection of taxes87.2%
Seizure of property54.3%
Loss of credit23.4%
Jail6.4%
Loss of job6.4%

Notable here is how much less people who have done tax resistance associate jail with tax resistance than did those who have never done it and know less about it (almost a third of them thought jail was a likely consequence of war tax resistance).

Would they consider a one-year tax strike?

More than three-quarters of the former tax resisters who were surveyed (77.7%) would “consider participating in a one-year commitment to refuse to pay a portion of your federal income taxes redirecting them to a humanitarian cause if thousands joined you publicly?”

They were also asked “Which resources would help you decide to participate?” (they could choose more than one). These were the results:

Knowing others are also doing it53.2%
Clear idea of likely consequences52.1%
Knowing the action will be publicized52.1%
Participation in collective alternative fund39.4%
Written guides to WTR28.7%
Group discussions options & methods20.2%
One on one counseling11.7%
Participation in the planning10.6%

, I’ll summarize the survey responses from people who are currently resisting taxes, which gives a demographic snapshot of some American war tax resisters.