The latest inflation report confirms that prices for just about everything continue to rise, with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) up 8.3 percent over the last year and many categories up even higher, including food (11.4 percent) and energy (23.8 percent). While not part of the CPI, another measure of inflation (call it the Taxpayer Price Index?) is also surging: federal tax collections are up 23 percent over the last year, according to the latest data from the Congressional Budget Office CBO). At the current pace, federal tax collections will reach a record high of about $5 trillion in nominal dollars for the fiscal year (FY) 2022 ending September 30, which is about $1 trillion more than last year’s $4 trillion in collections (also a record).