The Rich Pay a Lot of Tax

Many people think that the rich do not pay much tax, but the data say otherwise.

Scott Greenberg, John Olson write at The Tax Foundation:

Last week, the Congressional Budget Office released an annual publication, titled “The Distribution of Household Income and Federal Taxes, 2013.” This excellent report details the amount that different households pay in federal taxes, as well as the income and government transfers.

One of the main takeaways from this year’s report is that the richest Americans pay a lotin taxes. In 2013, the top 1 percent of households paid an average of 34.0 percent of their income in federal taxes. To compare, the middle 20 percent of households paid only 12.8 percent of their income in taxes.

Moreover, taxes on the rich are much higher than they’ve been in recent years. Between 2008 and 2012, the top 1 percent of households paid an average tax rate of 28.8 percent. However, in 2013, this figure spiked to 34.0 percent, as a result of tax increases in the“fiscal cliff” deal and the Affordable Care Act.