Poll: Americans Don’t Think All This Government Is Worth What We Pay for It
There were many reasons I left New York a quarter of a century ago, and taxes were just one among them. But along with less-restrictive laws and improved scenery, my move to Arizona rewarded me with substantially less banditry by state and local authorities. Still, I’d like an even lower tax bill, and so would most people. With Tax Day fast approaching, Americans consistently say they pay too much for government that isn’t worth the money.
Too Big a Take
“About two-thirds of people consider their federal income tax (67%), state sales tax (62%), and local property tax (69%) to be too high,” the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research reported in January.
My old neighbors in the Empire State have the most to complain about, with state and local taxes devouring an average of 15.9 percent of income in addition to what they pay the federal government, according to the Tax Foundation. By comparison, in Arizona where I now live, residents pay an average of 9.5 percent of income to the state and localities. Alaskans fork over the least at 4.6 percent in addition to the federal share.
The government’s reach into our pockets can add up quickly. At the federal level, according to the latest data, the average income tax rate in 2021 was 14.9 percent, up from 13.6 percent in 2020, and 13.29 percent in 2019. Add that to the state and local take and that’s a big chunk of money out of the family budget. That said, average rates cover wide disparities in the amounts for which people are mugged by tax collectors.
“The top 1 percent of taxpayers paid a 25.9 percent average rate, nearly eight times higher than the 3.3 percent average rate paid by the bottom half of taxpayers,” according to the Tax Foundation, with reference to the federal income tax.
Why do Americans resent the tax burden? Well, there’s the fact that taxes are compulsory payments in amounts over which they have little say. That’s a big deal bound to breed resentment. Adding insult to injury is that many people are not happy about what they get in return for those forced expenditures.
“About a third of adults say they are receiving poor value from the taxes they pay, while less than a quarter believe they receive good value from paying these taxes,” adds AP-NORC. “Most people lack confidence in the way taxes are spent by the federal government (66%) or state governments (58%). People are more likely to express at least some confidence in local governments (49%) or local school districts (53%) to spend their tax dollars wisely.”
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