[IMAGE] [LINK] [ISMAP] graphic Should there be a flat tax? Results of new poll show Americans favor a flat tax, with some changes December 22, 1997: 3:36 p.m. ET [LINK] [INLINE] Post: President Decides Against Tax Plan Offer - Dec. 21, 1997 [INLINE] The Gallup Organization USA Today More related sites... NEW YORK (CNNfn) - According to a CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll, Americans now favor, by a thin margin, a flat tax system in which all Americans would pay the same percentage of their income in taxes -- regardless of how much money they make. [INLINE] But the public opposes two central features of flat tax proposals: the elimination of deductions for mortgage interest and for charitable contributions. [INLINE] Only one third of the country would favor replacing the current income tax system with a national sales tax which would apply to all retail purchases. The public believes that most Americans pay their fair share in taxes. [INLINE] The poll interviewed 1,019 adult Americans on November 21-23. [INLINE] The results are as follows: [INLINE] Flat Tax System [INLINE] Favor, 51 percent [INLINE] Oppose, 46 percent [INLINE] Flat Tax System With No Mortgage Deduction [INLINE] Favor, 42 percent [INLINE] Oppose, 54 percent [INLINE] Flat Tax System With No Charitable Deduction [INLINE] Favor, 43 percent [INLINE] Oppose, 53 percent [INLINE] Replacing Income Tax With National Sales Tax [INLINE] Favor, 32 percent [INLINE] Oppose, 62 percent [INLINE] Do Most Americans Pay Their Fair Share in Taxes? [INLINE] Yes, 54 percent [INLINE] No, 43 percent [INLINE] Sampling error on all of the above questions: +/-3 percentage points. Link to top home | taxes | quicken.com on fn | contents | search | stock quotes | help Copyright © 1997 Cable News Network, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.