[jeffk]

Originally Posted by Mr. V

What is wrong with basing taxes on a person's ability to pay?
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It has always seemed unfair to me that the wealthiest members of our society seem to pay a disproportionately lesser amount of taxes.
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Sure, let the wealthy benefit from their wealth, but as a matter of public policy, they should pay more for The Common Good than they are.
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I won't say that some smarmy, well off people find some loopholes to exploit but in general the "rich" pay much more than their fair share in supporting the public agenda.

This link http://www.taxfoundation.org/news/show/250.html shows the US income taxes paid by percent of the total payees. For tax year 2004, about 130 million individual returns were filled. The top 1% of filers, about 1.3 M, paid about 37% of the total tax from individuals at a tax rate of 23.5%. The top 10%, 13 M payees, paid 68% of all individual tax, at a avg. 18.6% rate. The lowest 50% of earners, 65 M payees, paid 3.3% of all individual taxes at an avg rate of about 3%. Since 1980 the Amount of taxes paid by the top 1% of highest earners has gone from 19% to 37% of the total paid while the lowest 50% of earners has dropped from 7% of the total in 1980 to 3.3% in 2004.

In short, the highest earners shoulder the vast majority of the individual income tax burden and have have significantly increased the portion of the total that they pay since 1980!

In New Hampshire the more valuable the property (wealth) the higher the property tax.

A high earner living in NH and working in MA would be paying 23.5% fed income, 6% state, 6% Social Security, plus say 5% in property taxes for a total of 40.5%. Isn't this enough? How much more "common good" must be supported before it is "fair"?

People can always find something "good" to spend money on when it isn't their money. Wouldn't it be great to walk into a car dealership looking for a mid grade car and in walks a rich person and you turn to the dealer and say "Give me the upscale model and charge the extra to the rich guy". Why is it "good" or "fair" for government to do this? Everyone seems to want Cadillac education for the Chevy price and to "Send the bill to the rich guy".