Who Pays the Majority of Taxes in This Country?

There has been much speculation regarding exactly who pays the majority of taxes in this country.  Most of the time it is felt that the rich do not pay their fair share and that the tax burden is principally borne by the middle class:

 

New IRS data released last month tell a very different story: In the aftermath of the Bush investment tax cuts, the federal income tax burden has substantially shifted onto the backs of the wealthy.  Between 2002 and 2004, tax payments by those with adjusted gross incomes (AGI) of more than $200,000 a year, which is roughly 3% of taxpayers, increased by 19.4% — more than double the 9.3% increase for all other taxpayers.  Between 2001 and 2004 (the most recent data), the percentage of federal income taxes paid by those with $200,000 incomes and above has risen to 46.6% from 40.5%. In other words, out of every 100 Americans, the wealthiest three are now paying close to the same amount in taxes as the other 97 combined.

 

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One final footnote to this story: Just last week, the Department of the Treasury released its tax receipt data for March 2006.  Tax collections for the past 12 months have exploded by 14.4%. We are now on course for a two-year increase in tax revenues of at least $500 billion, the largest two-year increase in tax revenue collections after adjusting for inflation ever recorded.  So why are the leftists complaining so much?  George Bush’s tax rate cuts have been among the most successful policies to soak the rich in American history.

 

Source: “How to Soak the Rich (the George Bush Way),” Wall Street Journal, May 4, 2006