FAQs about taxes
Where does our tax money go?
This Real Clear Politics article outlines where our tax money will be spent in some detail. Here is a summary of the articles findings:
Our government is spending $33,880 per household in 2009 (nearly $8,000 more than last year). The average household is paying $18,277 in taxes and the remaining $15,603 will be added to the national debt.
Here’s a breakdown of the spending:
- $9,418 for Social Security and Medicare
- $6,327 for bailouts
- $5,850 for defense
- $4,745 for Anti-Poverty programs
- $1,210 in interest on the federal debt
- $982 on Federal employee retirement benefits
- $902 on unemployment benefits
- $819 on Verterans’ benefits
- $699 on Health Research and regulation
- $528 on highways and mass transit
- $452 on Justice administration
- $415 on education
How many pages are in the US Tax code?
That’s a really good question. According to this web page, the US Government Printing Office says it is 16,845 pages. The same web page quotes some of our representatives saying it is anywhere between 2,500 and 2,500,000 pages long. The original tax form was created in 1913 and was four pages, including instructions. It can be found here. I believe we need to be closer to 4 pages than 16,845.
Some history on income tax
As mentioned above, the income tax was instituted in 1913 with the 16th amendment to the Constitution. It was intended to levy taxes on the top one percent of income earners in the US.
The Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) was implemented in 1970 to target 155 (that’s correct one hundred and fifty five) high-income households that were paying little to no income tax because of deductions and loopholes. Now it affects over 24 million people and essentially creates a tax penalty for the middle to upper-middle class.
Does our tax code favor sending jobs overseas?
It definitely does. US Corporations can deduct their expenses on their US tax forms (a 35% deduction) and declare income in another country with a lower tax rate (Ireland’s is 12.5%). They need to pay the difference between the 35% and the 12.5% when they bring the money back into the US. So, they keep it overseas and “loan” money to their US divisions. You can read USA Today’s take on it here.
What about our high corporate tax rate?
Many people point out that the US tax rate of 35% is the second highest in the world and must be lowered. However, this Center on Budget and Policy Priorities summary shows US corporations pay an average of 13.4%. What I find really interesting is that the lowest tax rate is -46%. Basically, these are companies where our tax money is subsidizing companies through tax breaks and loopholes. Obviously, we need to reform corporate taxes to “level the playing field”, especially for small businesses.
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