(click on chart to enlarge)
TW: A common complaint from conservatives is that the wealthy are not over-taxed but arguably over-taxed. Their basis usually is some statistic showing the wealthy paying a high % of total FEDERAL taxes. I agree the wealthy pay a high % of FEDERAL taxes but the reason is quite simple, they have a HIGH % of the total income and an even higher % of total wealth. I wish the chart showed income broken out more detailed with the top 1% and 5% brackets as the trends would be even more pronounced.
But fundamentally I have two problems with the conservative complaint. One it is circular, if a group has a high % of income inherently, unless the tax system is regressive, they will in fact pay a high % of the income tax. Two, conservatives almost never mention any taxation other than FEDERAL income tax. The FEDERAL income tax is the most progressive tax. They exclude taxes which are far less progressive including state taxes, property taxes, sales taxes and fees, payroll taxes for social security and medicare and dividends.
2 comments:
You're on a roll Trey. But I’ll take your point and counter.
#1 Maybe you should include property taxes in your equation.
The problem is the tax as a % of income is greatest in counties with the most expensive homes and highest median incomes.
http://taxfoundation.org/taxdata/show/24052.html
Non-starter.
#2 Social Security and medicare are benefits. Non sequitor.
To quote Harry Truman--"Social Security...is not a dole or a device for giving everybody something for nothing. True Social Security must consist of rights which are earned rights -- guaranteed by the law of the land."
When we add back the EITC then we’re looking at payroll taxes and federal taxes wiped out for earners under $20k and nearly a quarter of payroll tax wiped out for earners making $30k.
#3 Should marginal tax rates be raised? OK maybe on the super wealthy but why the working wealthy? On the upper end, shouldn’t a graduated capital gains tax be considered so Warren Buffet pays as much on the margin as his secretary?
The fact remains that 5% of taxpayers (making over $153, 542) comprise 37% of the income and 60% of the federal taxes. 30% of taxpayers have zero tax or refunds.
What truly needs to be addressed is the AMT. A political hot potato that impacts blue states more than red. All the tax reform in the world does nothing without a permanent fix for AMT.
thx
Am traveling will u back later in wk
Post a Comment