单选题
Americans often say that there are only two things a person can be sure of in life: death and taxes. Americans do not have a comer on the "death" market, but many people feel that the United States leads the world with the most taxes.
Taxes consist of the money which people pay to support their government. There are generally three levels of government in the United States: federal, state, and city: therefore, there are three types of taxes.
Salaried people who earn more than a few thousand dollars must pay a certain percentage of their salaries to the federal government. The percentage varies from person to person. It depends on their salaries. The federal government has a graduated income tax, that is, the percentage of the tax increases as a person"s income increase. With the high cost of taxes, people are not very happy on April 15, when the federal taxes are due.
The second tax is for the state government: New York, California, or any of the other forty-eight states. Some states have an income tax similar to that of the federal government. Of course, the percentage for the state tax is lower. Other states have a sales tax, which is a percentage charged to any item which you buy in that state. For example, a person might want to buy a packet of cigarettes for twenty-five cents. If there is a sales tax of eight percent in that state, then the cost of the cigarettes is twenty-seven cents. This figure includes the sales tax. Some states use income tax in addition to sales tax to raise their revenues. The state tax laws are diverse and confusing.
The third tax is for the city. This tax comes in two forms: property tax (people who own a home have to pay taxes on it) and excise tax, which is charged on cars in a city. The cities use these funds for education, police and fire department, public works and municipal buildings.
Since Americans pay such high taxes, they often feel that they are working one day each week just to pay their taxes. People always complain about taxes. They often protest that the government uses their tax dollars in the wrong way. They say that it spends too much on useless and impractical programs. Although Americans have different view on many issues, they tend to agree on one subject: taxes are too high.
单选题
How do you understand "Americans do not have a corner on the death market"?
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[解析] 根据第一段的“Americans do not have a comer on the "death" market, but many people feel that the United States leads the world with the most taxes.”可知，虽然美国人并没有垄断了世界“死亡殡葬业”的市场，但是美国确实以最苛重的赋税在世界上独占鳌头。have a comer on意为“独占(某一行业)，垄断(某种商品)”，因此A项正确。
单选题
What"s the attitude of the Americans towards taxes?
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】[解析] 根据最后一段的“Since Americans pay such high taxes, they often feel that they are working one each week just to pay their taxes. People always complain about taxes. They often protest that the government uses their tax dollars in the wrong way.”可知，因为美国人都要交纳数额很高的各种税款，所以他们都常常认为每周必须有一天是为了纳税去工作。人们老是抱怨这些税收。他们经常抗议说，政府对他们交纳的税金使用不当。据此可知，美国人对各种税收的态度是抱怨和抗议，故C项正确。
单选题
What"s the difference between federal tax and state tax?
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】[解析] “Some states have an income tax similar to that of the federal government. Of course, the percentage for the state tax is lower.”有些州征收所得税，这跟联邦政府征的所得税类似，但这些州的税收百分比要低些。据此可知，D项正确。
单选题
Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】[解析] 根据第四段的“The state tax laws are diverse and confusing”可知，各州的税法显然是很不相同的，也很混乱。据此可知，B项与文章所述不符。
单选题
Which of the following usages of the taxes is NOT mentioned in the passage?
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】[解析] 根据第四段的“Some states use income tax in addition to sales tax to raise their revenues.”可知，有些州除了征收所得税，还要加征销售税，以提高州政府每年的收入。根据第五段的“The cities use these funds for education, police and fire department, public works and municipal buildings.”可知，这些税收资金用于教育、警察、消防等部门及公共设施和市政建设。据此可知，A，C，D三项都是文中提及的税收用途，只有B项未被提及。