IRS Releases Data on Burden of Income Tax

The IRS has recently released data showing that the share of the federal income tax borne by taxpayers in the highest income tax brackets has increased under the Bush Administration.  The data lays to rest the myth that the Bush tax cuts of 2001 and 2003 amounted to tax cuts for the rich.  The data reveal that the share of total federal income taxes paid by the wealthiest 1 percent of tax filers (those with adjusted gross income over $388,806) increased to 39.89 percent in 2006 (up from 37.42 percent in 2000).  In 2006, the top 5 percent accounted for 60.14 percent of all federal income tax revenue, and 97.01 percent of all federal income revenue was paid by the top 50 percent of income tax filers.  Alternatively, in 2006, the tax burden on the bottom half of tax filers (those with adjusted gross income under $31,987) stood at an all-time low of 2.99 percent.  The IRS data also reveals that the share of income generated by the wealthiest 1 percent of taxpayers increased from 14.23 percent to 20.81 percent from 1992-2000, coinciding with the Clinton Presidency.  Under the Bush Administration, the rate of growth of the share of income generated by the wealthiest 1 percent declined substantially, only increasing to22.06 percent in 2006.   Source:  IRS, 2006 Tax Data.