Raising the tax rate on essential goods -- a traditional means of increasing government revenues -- invariably turns low- and middle-income taxpayers against the government. Hence government officials have proposed adding a new tax on purchases of luxury items such as yachts, private planes, jewels, and furs. The officials claim that this tax will result in a substantial increase in government revenues while affecting only the wealthy individuals and corporations who can afford to purchase such items.
The answer to the question 'Will the revenues generated by the proposed tax be comparable to those that are currently being generated by taxes on essential goods?' would be the most relevant in evaluating the accuracy of the government officials' prediction.