Free Republic

For 2015, American taxpayers will have to work nearly a third of the year before they’ve made enough money to pay their taxes, a new report from the Tax Foundation finds. Every year the Tax Foundation studies tax data to calculate how long Americans work to pay federal, state and local taxes. The result is Tax Freedom Day, which is the day taxpayers finally begin working for themselves instead of the government. As the Tax Foundation explains, “Tax Freedom Day is the day when the nation as a whole has earned enough money to pay its total tax bill for...

The day when the nation collectively has made enough money to pay its total tax burden for the year is three days later this year, according to a new report. According to a report released Monday by the Tax Foundation, this year Tax Freedom Day falls 111 days into 2014, on April 21. By April 21, to group says, Americans will have made enough to pay the $3 trillion in federal taxes and $1.5 trillion in state taxes — more than they will spend on food clothing and housing combined.

What is Tax Freedom Day? Tax Freedom Day is the day when the nation as a whole has earned enough money to pay its total tax bill for the year. A vivid, calendar based illustration of the cost of government, Tax Freedom Day divides all federal, state, and local taxes by the nation’s income. In 2013, Americans will pay $2.76 trillion in federal taxes and $1.45 trillion in state taxes, for a total tax bill of $4.22 trillion, or 29.4 percent of income. April 18 is 29.4 percent, or 108 days, into the year. Why is Tax Freedom Day later...

Tax Freedom Day® 2012 arrives on April 17 this year, four days later than last year due to higher federal income and corporate tax collections. That means Americans will work 107 days into the year, from January 1 to April 17, to earn enough money to pay this year’s combined 29.2% federal, state, and local tax bill...

According to the Tax Foundation, in 2008, Americans will work 74 days to afford their federal taxes and 39 more days to pay state and local taxes. Meanwhile, buying food requires 35 days of work, clothing 13 days, and housing 60 days. Unfortunately, the numbers don’t lie; government in the United States continues to be a fixture in the budget of the American taxpayer. In 1900, Tax Freedom day was January 22; roughly 5% of a person’s gross income went towards taxes. Today, the average person will contribute approximately 30% of their gross income towards taxes at the state, federal,...

Taxes: Resting easier now that filing day is over? That would be premature. Today — Tuesday, May 1 — is when we're really free of taxes. But not for another year, just another eight months. According to the Tax Foundation, a Washington-based research group, it was not until Monday, April 30, that Americans had "earned enough money to pay this year's tax obligations at the federal, state and local levels." For those keeping score, that's 120 working days, even with the tax cuts pushed through by the Bush administration. The federal government's tax bill alone requires 79 days, making it...

Though seemingly an insignificant date of historical importance, May 4 is a day of momentous tax events. It was on May 4, 1932, notorious gangster Al Capone was jailed for tax evasion based in-part on the uncompromising investigation of Eliot Ness. Capone's jailing ended his infamous reign of terror in Chicago. May 4, 2006, is also a day of infamy for Washington taxpayers. It is on this day Washingtonians will finally reach their Tax Freedom Day, ending the reign of terror taxes have on our wallets for the year. Each year the Tax Foundation calculates the date by which taxpayers...

Tax Freedom Day will arrive on the 116th day of 2006 — Wednesday, April 26. Because of the rising tax payments that accompany economic growth, this year’s Tax Freedom Day is three days later than it was in 2005 and a remarkable 10 days later than it was in 2004. Despite the rapid growth of the total tax burden between 2004 and 2006, Tax Freedom Day still shows the effects of the Bush tax cuts in 2001 and 2003. Even as late as April 26, Tax Freedom Day is still celebrated seven days earlier than it was in 2000 when...

The March 2005 Budget moved Tax Freedom Day later by 3 days, from 27 May (revised figure) in 2004, to 31 May in 2005. This is actually an increase of three days because 2004 was a leap year. So we get three days more of the year that we have to work for the government, rather than for ourselves.

Washington, D.C., April 7, 2004 — According to Tax Foundation calculations using the latest government data on income and taxes, Tax Freedom Day® in 2004 will be celebrated on April 11th, the earliest Tax Freedom Day for 37 years. April 11th is three days earlier than 2003’s Tax Freedom Day of April 14 and an amazing 21 days earlier than in 2000, when the boom and bubble pushed tax burdens to a record high, and Tax Freedom Day was postponed until May 2 (see Figure 1). "Federal tax cuts have made the average American tax burden lighter in 2004," said...

Tax Freedom Day Comes on April 11 in 2004, Earliest Since 1967 Washington, D.C., April 7, 2004 — According to Tax Foundation calculations using the latest government data on income and taxes, Tax Freedom Day® in 2004 will be celebrated on April 11th, the earliest Tax Freedom Day for 37 years. April 11th is three days earlier than 2003’s Tax Freedom Day of April 14 and an amazing 21 days earlier than in 2000, when the boom and bubble pushed tax burdens to a record high, and Tax Freedom Day was postponed until May 2 (see Figure 1). "Federal tax...