The top income earners now shoulder far more of the federal tax burden than they did in the early 1980s.
25th October 2008
Popular mythology to the contrary notwithstanding.
Any discussion of reforming America’s federal tax system should begin with the recognition that it is already highly progressive. According to the latest Internal Revenue Service (IRS) data, the top 1 percent of income earners paid nearly 40 percent of federal individual income taxes in 2006, compared to roughly 19 percent in 1980. Between 1980 and 2006, the share of federal income taxes paid by the top 5 percent jumped from under 37 percent to over 60 percent. During that same period, the share paid by the top 10 percent went from around 49 percent to almost 71 percent.
But Barack thinks that the wealth isn’t being shared enough.