Taxes are money that people and businesses pay to the government to fund public services and programs. When your parents earn money at work, they pay a portion of it in taxes. When they buy something at a store, they often pay sales tax on top of the price. Homeowners pay property taxes on their houses.

The government uses tax money to pay for things that benefit everyone: schools, roads, libraries, police and fire departments, national defense, and programs that help people in need. Without taxes, there would be no public schools to attend, no fire trucks to respond to emergencies, and no one to maintain the highways your family drives on.

Different types of taxes work in different ways. Income tax comes from the money you earn. Sales tax is added when you buy things. Property tax is based on the value of land and buildings someone owns. The government decides how much tax people owe based on laws that elected representatives create and vote on.

People often debate how high taxes should be and what they should pay for, but the basic idea is simple: taxes are how communities pool their resources to create things that help everyone and that would be difficult or impossible for individuals to provide on their own.