Tax Bills For Rich Families Approach 30-Year High
By: Melissa Garrett
Updated: March 3, 2013
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Washington is gridlocked again over whether to raise taxes on the rich.
But it turns out that wealthy families already are paying some of their biggest federal tax bills in decades, even as the rest of the population continues to pay at historically low rates.
A new analysis shows that average tax bills for high-income families rarely have been higher since the Congressional Budget Office began tracking the data in 1979.
It's the middle- and low-income families who aren't paying as much as they used to.
Liberals say rich families can afford to pay higher taxes because their incomes have grown much more than incomes for middle- and low-income families.
Conservatives say raising taxes on the wealthy would reduce their incentive to save and invest, hurting long-term economic growth.
But it turns out that wealthy families already are paying some of their biggest federal tax bills in decades, even as the rest of the population continues to pay at historically low rates.
A new analysis shows that average tax bills for high-income families rarely have been higher since the Congressional Budget Office began tracking the data in 1979.
It's the middle- and low-income families who aren't paying as much as they used to.
Liberals say rich families can afford to pay higher taxes because their incomes have grown much more than incomes for middle- and low-income families.
Conservatives say raising taxes on the wealthy would reduce their incentive to save and invest, hurting long-term economic growth.
