Basic tax data

[hfojvt]

In Thursday's Daily Howler, Somerby was complaining that the public has no source for basic facts about taxes.

"Why are we required to “think” X, Y and Z about federal taxes? Why can’t we be allowed to know about such basic matters? Why isn’t there a digest of user-friendly information where voters can learn basic facts?"

So here's my attempt to answer that call, although I am not sure how "user friendly" this is.

First, about basic tax rates, here is the link to ITEP's report on State taxes.

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/159

Then for Federal taxes, I have computed them for various classes over time (unfortunately not going back before 1986)

average tax rates by group

year       top .1%      top 1%     next 4%    next 5%     next 15%     next 25%     bottom 50%
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
1986       n/d         33.13      19.10        15.99        12.83         10.62         5.63
1990       n/d         23.25      17.60        13.63        12.01          9.73         5.01
1995       n/d         28.73      18.19        14.46        11.71          9.43         4.39
2000      28.20        27.45      20.07        15.48        12.04          9.28         4.60
2005      22.52        23.13      17.36        12.37         9.27          6.93         2.98
2007      21.46        22.45      17.52        12.66         9.43          7.01         2.99
2008      22.70        23.27      17.21        12.44         9.29          6.75         2.59 

Data calculated from tables 5 and 6 here http://www.irs.gov/taxstats/indtaxstats/article/0,,id=133521,00.html
(Note to those who might check my work, the IRS tables have the average tax rate for the top 5%, whereas I calculated it for the next 4% - that is, I removed the top 1% from the top 5%, then removed the top 5% from the top 10%, and so on. I did not remove the top .1% from the top 1%, although I may do so later as that might be interesting.

No data on the top .1% until 2001 (which I used for 2000). The income boundaries are as follows

year       top .1%      top 1%     next 4%    next 5%     next 15%     next 25%     bottom 50%
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
1986       n/d          111,818     62,377      48,656      32,242        17,302        less
1990       n/d          167,421     79,064      60,287      38,080        19,767        less
1995       n/d          209,406     96,221      72,094      44,207        22,344        less
2000   1,324,487        313,469    128,336      92,144      55,225        27,682        less
2005   1,848,791        364,657    145,283     103,912      62,068        30,881        less
2007   2,155,365        410,096    160,041     113,018      66,532        32,879        less
2008   1,803,585        380,354    159,619     113,799      67,280        33,048        less 

Another key piece of data is how the share of income of the top 1% has grown over the last 20 years while the income of the bottom 50% has shrunk. That is in graph form here http://www.koch2congress.com/5.html

Through the years I have written a fair amount about various tax issues which I will link to here, the idea being to create a "one stop shop" for tax information (not that I have answered every possible question but I try when they become relevant issues).


Who gets the payroll tax cut?
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/160


Who gets most of the benefits from itemized deductions?
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/151


Comparison of rates before and after Bush
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/103


Who gets most of the dividend tax cuts?
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/81


About IRA deductions
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/102


Fundamentals of the UnFairTax (as the FairTax should properly be called)
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/55


Why the Flat Tax is a bad idea
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/69


Debunking the Laffer Curve
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/53


About the Fab 400
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/123


The rich get richer
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/126


Tax cuts for the top .1% vs. tax cuts for the bottom 50%
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/156


How the Wall Street Journal lies about taxes
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/67


The AP repeats Republican talking points (and errors) on taxes
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/77


Republican Governor opposes tax increases on the rich
and cuts jobs, shorts the pension fund, cuts education
and increases taxes on seniors and the poor
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/128


Democratic Governor gives $1 billion in tax cuts to the rich
and cuts education spending
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/hfojvt/154


Of course, one place I always turn to for tax research is Citizens for Tax Justice
http://www.ctj.org/


And, although I think they produced sloppy research supporting the payroll tax cuts,
I usually appreciate the analysis of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
http://www.cbpp.org/policyBasics/

[dkf]

1. Why isn't there a database that we can use to tear apart the numbers ourselves?

[hfojvt]

2. I linked to that

Data calculated from tables 5 and 6 here http://www.irs.gov/taxstats/indtaxstats/article/0,,id=133521,00.html

Although the copy of the copy of the link may not be working right. I will check.

[Make7]

3. Try using the [pre][/pre] tags for formatting.

It will allow you to use multiple spaces in a row and should also use a fixed width font. That should make things easier to read. For example:

year     top .1%       top 1%    next 4%      next 5%     next 15%      next 25%     bottom 50%
_______________________________________________________________________________________________

1986       n/d         33.13      19.10        15.99        12.83         10.62         5.63
1990       n/d         23.25      17.60        13.63        12.01          9.73         5.01
1995       n/d         28.73      18.19        14.46        11.71          9.43         4.39
2000      28.20        27.45      20.07        15.48        12.04          9.28         4.60
2005      22.52        23.13      17.36        12.37         9.27          6.93         2.98
2007      21.46        22.45      17.52        12.66         9.43          7.01         2.99
2008      22.70        23.27      17.21        12.44         9.29          6.75         2.59

[hfojvt]

4. that is better

but I am feeling some carpal tunnel from all of the back spacing and forward spacing done in a hurry. Ow.

[hfojvt]

5. so far, it seems the public is not that interested

this may explain why the media does not bother to dig up any pesky old facts.

[hfojvt]

6. despite a lack of popular demand - rate of .1% compared to the other .09%

average tax rate

year  top .1%   next .09%
________________________
2001    28.2     26.89
2005    22.52    23.74
2007    21.46    23.54
2008    22.70    23.83 

[hfojvt]

7. one more piece of data, just because I felt like calculating it

average income by income group in 2011 constant dollars

 
year    top .1%     top 1%   next 4%   next 5%   next 15%   next 25%   bottom 50%
______________________________________________________________________________
1986     X         577,450   163,630   112,590    81,480     49,680     17,030
______________________________________________________________________________
1990     X         742.490   180,570   118,210    82,570     48,450     15,940
1995     X         785,380   191,120   122,140    83,260     47,540     15,640
2000  5,188,970   1,371,520  238,700   141,170    92,910     52,370     17,120
2005  6,992,660   1,392,320  238,850   140,500    92,280     51,620     16,850
2007  8,127,320   1,555,400  249,060   144,570    93,840     51,890     16,700
______________________________________________________________________________
2008  6,310,250   1,267,110  233,280   139,800    91,300     50,340     16,160 

[hfojvt]

8. hey, I got back up to two

somebody cancelled the unrec.

This is just an experiment.