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Conservatively Speaking
State Senator Mary Lazich (R-New Berlin), whose district includes New Berlin, Franklin, Greendale, Hales Corners, and parts of Greenfield, has been in the Legislature for more than a decade.
She considers herself a tireless crusader for lower taxes, reduced spending and smaller government.
Tax Freedom Day in Wisconsin is April 24
By Mary Lazich
Saturday, Mar 29 2008, 07:01 AM
Think about all of the important expenditures your family makes in the course of a year. The list certainly would include food, clothing, and shelter.
Now think about the time you have to work to earn enough money to afford those necessities.
In calculating this year’s Tax Freedom Day, the non-partisan Tax Foundation in Washington D.C. says, “Americans will work longer to pay for government (113 days) than they will for food, clothing and housing combined (108 days). In fact, Americans will work longer to afford federal taxes alone (74 days) than they will to afford housing (60 days). As a group, Americans will also work longer to pay state and local taxes than they will to pay for food.”
Tax Freedom Day, the day that workers will have earned enough to pay all their federal, state and local taxes, comes on April 23, 2008. Wisconsin’s Tax Freedom day, the 14th latest in the country, arrives one day later, April 24, 2008.
Using data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis in the U.S. Department of Commerce, the Tax Foundation determined America’s Tax Freedom Day by dividing the nation’s total tax payments, $3,910 billion, by the nation’s income as projected by the Tax Foundation for 2008, $12,696 billion. The result, 30.8% is then multiplied by 365 days, equaling 113 days. The 113th day of the year (TheTax Foundation ignored Leap Day) is April 23.
The annual study also breaks down the burden of the various taxes Americans pay, beginning with the largest and most visible, individual income and payroll taxes.
All but 7 states, impose a state income tax on top of the federal income tax. Each American will have to work 42 days to pay off income taxes.
Americans will work, according to the Tax Foundation, another 28 days to afford their payroll taxes that fund Social Security and Medicare, deductions that are clearly designated on payroll stubs. To pay for other add-on taxes like sales and excise taxes, Americans will work another 16 days.
We cannot forget local property taxes. That adds on another 12 days of work.
The Tax Foundation also calculates Americans have to work 13 days to pay for corporate income taxes, figuring that taxes on businesses do get passed on to individuals in the form of increased prices, smaller wages and employment levels, and lower stockholder values.
Add in one more day for estate and gift taxes and one more day for other taxes and the total number of work days needed to afford the tax burden is 113.
Here is the bottom line: You work long and hard to afford essentials like food and clothing. Nothing you work so hard for is as expensive as government.
Here is more information on Tax Freedom Day.
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