Who Pays Taxes and How Much

"Currently, the 1% of American households with the highest incomes -- those earning an average of about $1 million a year -- pay about 31% of their income in federal taxes, including payroll tax and income tax, according to the Congressional Budget Office.  The 20% of households with the lowest incomes -- those earning an average of about $15,000 a year -- pay less than 5% of their incomes in taxes."

"That tax system is modestly more progressive today than it was a quarter-century ago.  In 1980, households in the bottom 20% of the income distribution earned 5.7% of all income and paid 2% of all federal taxes; in 2003 -- the most recent data available -- they earned 4.2% of all income and paid 1% of all taxes.  Meanwhile, the highest earning 20% of households earned 45.8% of income in 1980 and paid 56.3% of all taxes.  In 2003 those high-income households earned 52.2% of income and paid 65.7% of taxes."

Source: "Taxes: Who Pays, and How Much?", Wall Street Journal, April 15, 2006