What Amounts to a Fair Share?
More frustration today over class warfare in America. I am getting so tired of hearing
that the “rich”, whoever they are, need to pay their “fair share”. The table below is a little dated (2006) but clearly paints a picture of the load carried by wealthier Americans.So my question is simply this: How much MORE is fair when the top 5% of earners alreadypay 60% of the taxes? How much MORE should they be expected or required to give? I meanthis is still America, right?
Percentile Ranked Adjusted Gross Income Percentage of Federal
By AGI Income Personal Income Tax
Top 1% $388,806 39.89%
Top 5% 153,542 60.14%
Top 10% 108,904 70.79%
Top 25% 64, 702 86.27%
Top 50% 31,987 97.01%
Bottom 50% <31,987 2.99%
Update: The chart above is from the Joint Economic Committe (based on 2006 IRS data),
showing the percentages of federal personal income tax paid by different groups of taxpayers:
The top 1% of taxpayers pay about 40% of all income taxes, the top 10% pay 71%, and the top 50%
pay 97% of all taxes. The bottom 50% pays less than 3% of all income taxes paid.