In recent years, a middle class family making $70,000 a year paid about 14% of their income in federal income taxes. That's a far greater percentage than the super-rich pay. Note the chart above, which shows the income tax percentage paid by the four richest men in the country from 2014 to 2018. All of them paid less than 4%, and a couple paid less than 1%! And this was legal! And don't think these four are somehow different than other very rich Americans.
It shows how the rich members of Congress have written tax laws that benefit themselves and their rich friends.
Most Americans don't begrudge paying their fair share of taxes. Polls have shown that. But they don't like the rich being able to dodge most of their tax burden -- and that is what's happening. It's time to change our tax laws, so that the rich (and corporations) pay their fair share of taxes (that should be a higher percentage than is paid by middle class Americans).
The chart above, and it's excellent accompanying article on the rich legally avoiding taxes, is from ProPublica.org.
