Free Republic

Because it is tax season. . . Let's put tax cuts in terms everyone can understand. Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this: The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing. The fifth would pay $1. The sixth would pay $3. The seventh would pay $7. The eighth would pay $12. The ninth would pay $18. The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59. So, that's what they decided to...

Report: N.J., 18 Other States Tax Poverty-Stricken (CBS/AP) TRENTON New Jersey is among 19 states that tax families living in poverty, according to a new report released Tuesday. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities found two-parent families of four who earn less than the federal poverty line -- $20,615 per year -- must pay income taxes in 19 of the 42 states that levy that tax. "Families with very limited means are still taxed too much by states," said Jason Levitis, the report's author. New Jersey doesn't require residents who earn less than $20,000 per year to pay income...

To live in California is to pay the highest state income tax rate in the nation, if you're wealthy enough. Last week, voters had a chance to raise that tax rate to new heights by approving Proposition 82. They declined. Did they figure that the Golden State's rich were already thoroughly soaked — or did 82, which would have funded universal preschool for 4-year-olds, just not present a convincing enough case? Nevada is right next door, after all, and it has no income tax, period. Proposition 82 would have raised California's top tax to 12% from 10.3%. Rodriguez sees a...

When it comes to spending their tax money, voters can be wary even of very good causes. While the political world was obsessed with the Republican victory in a special election for a California congressional seat, the truly sobering news for liberals was in the statewide voting. Proposition 82, the ballot measure that would have guaranteed access to preschool for all of California's 4-year-olds, went down to resounding defeat, 61 to 39 percent.

Preschool for All Committee Total (last twelve months):$2,169,584 Cash on Hand (as of June 30):$195,431 Expenditures (Note: this includes only late contributions, generally large electronically filed contributions.This is not necessarily the total amount of cash-on-hand for the committee.) << Donor >> << Amount >> << Received Date >> << Report Date >> Carl And Estelle Reiner (Beverly Hills, CA) $500,000 12/07/2005 12/16/2005 Jamel Perkins (San Francisco, CA) $5,000 11/22/2005 12/02/2005 Catholic Healthcare West (Phoenix, AZ) $25,000 11/11/2005 11/18/2005 Brian S. Snyder (New York, NY) $30,000 11/10/2005 11/18/2005 Hispanic Express, Inc. (Los Angeles, CA) $20,000 11/09/2005 11/18/2005 Elon R. Musk (Los...

Majority say high-income earners should pay Soc. Sec. tax on all their wages and get lower benefits. Wealthier Americans should take the hit to bolster Social Security, according to a new CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll conducted over the weekend and released Tuesday. More than two-thirds of 1,010 adults contacted between Feb. 4 and Feb. 6 said it would be a "good idea" to limit benefits for wealthier retirees and to make higher income workers pay Social Security taxes on all their wages. Meanwhile, 55 percent think President Bush's proposal to allow future wage-earners to invest some of their Social Security taxes...

Since 2001, President Bush's tax cuts have shifted federal tax payments from the richest Americans to a wide swath of middle-class families, the Congressional Budget Office has found, a conclusion likely to roil the presidential election campaign. The CBO study, due to be released today, found that the wealthiest 20 percent, whose incomes averaged $182,700 in 2001, saw their share of federal taxes drop from 64.4 percent of total tax payments in 2001 to 63.5 percent this year. The top 1 percent, earning $1.1 million, saw their share fall to 20.1 percent of the total, from 22.2 percent. Over that...

In a tour to promote his new tax relief plan, Gov. James E. McGreevey last week sat with reporters to review his "three-pronged" FAIR (Fair and Immediate Relief) tax relief plan. The plan includes what McGreevey has dubbed a "millionaires’ tax" that would place a 2.6 percent tax on households making $500,000 or more annually, as well as a 2.5 percent cap on administrative spending and a proposed constitutional convention on property taxes that would allow New Jersey’s citizens to make recommendations to the state legislation. While eating what appeared to be a turkey sandwich, McGreevey said the millionaires’ tax,...

Ballot issue would tax the rich to fund mental health programs MEASURE TARGETS THOSE MAKING OVER $1 MILLION By Putsata Reang Mercury News Santa Clara County leaders are debating whether to support a controversial state ballot measure set to go before voters this fall that would tap California's richest residents -- about 30,000 -- to pay for mental health programs. Under the proposed Mental Health Services Act, anyone who earns more than $1 million would be taxed an additional 1 percent on every dollar earned beyond that first $1 million, raising the current tax rate on that income from 9.3...

Huffington says she would `tinker' with Prop. 13 By Lori Aratani Mercury News AP Arianna Huffington brushes her hair as she addresses San Francisco's Commonwealth Club of California. SAN FRANCISCO - Political columnist turned gubernatorial candidate Arianna Huffington swept through town today pledging to resolve the California's budget crisis by tinkering with the state's sacred tax cow, Proposition 13 ``To stabilize our budget, we need to build a budget based on a more predictable revenue source -- namely property taxes,'' she told members of the Commonwealth Club. ``There, I said it, and what do you know? Lightning didn't strike me...

Jackson calls on neighboring St. Joseph to lend a hand to Benton Harbor By JAMES PRICHARD The Associated Press 6/20/2003, 2:55 p.m. ET BENTON HARBOR, Mich. (AP) — The Rev. Jesse Jackson says St. Joseph should take more responsibility in helping this neighboring community whose residents' outrage led to nighttime rioting this week. "Biblically, it is the strongest of us who must bear the burden of the weakest of us," the civil rights activist told an audience of about 200 at a Benton Harbor community center on Friday. Boarded-up buildings line many of the streets in economically strapped Benton Harbor....

Senators deal, put tax increase on ballot HARRY ESTEVE SALEM -- Spurred by a desire to quit and go home, Senate leaders brokered a deal Tuesday night that could bring the Oregon Legislature's record-setting fifth special session to an end. The Senate voted 18-10 to send a proposed three-year income tax increase to a statewide vote in January. The House and the Senate were pushing late Tuesday toward adjournment, possibly by early today. "I think we have good momentum to close out this chapter," said House Majority Leader Karen Minnis, R-Wood Village. The linchpin of the deal was the temporary...

Mayor wants tiered garbage fees Charles Meeker says Raleigh's higher-income residents generally buy more, so they produce more trash. By JOANNA KAKISSIS, Staff Writer RALEIGH - Mayor Charles Meeker said Monday he wants the City Council to consider adjusting a proposed increase in the garbage collection fee so that it's based on household income -- a move he says will more equitably distribute the charges. Meeker and other council members say flat fees for such services are regressive, meaning that poor residents pay the same as richer ones. Meeker also says he's operating on the premise that higher-income residents generally...

<p>TRENTON -- NJ SAVER property tax rebates, which may be pared back or suspended by Gov. James E. McGreevey in an effort to balance the state budget, are paid in greater totals to residents of Republican legislative districts than Democratic districts.</p>