Whose Tax Burden Is Too Heavy?
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I was a little mystified by the front-page, above-the-fold display of the story about small-business owner Gail Johnson and her family, who will have to pay 19 percent more in taxes under President Obama ["Small Businesses Brace for Tax Battle; Under Obama Plan, Some Entrepreneurs' Bills Would Soar," April 27]. I'm sure that no one in the family is happy about this burden. However, Ms. Johnson and her husband make $500,000 and have been paying about $120,000 in federal taxes, or 24 percent of their income. The increase of $23,000 under Mr. Obama's tax policies will take them to $143,000, or about 28.6 percent. The vast majority of small-business owners make less than $100,000 and, in addition to federal taxes, pay 12.4 percent in Social Security taxes. That would be $12,400 for a small business making $100,000. But the cutoff for Social Security is $102,000, so the Johnsons would pay $12,650, or about 2.5 percent of their income. So, in total, under Mr. Obama, they will move from paying about 26.5 percent for federal taxes and Social Security to 31 percent.
I would guess that most small-business people would be happy to get away with paying 31 percent of their income -- particularly if, after paying their taxes, they still had $345,000 to get by on. I wonder whether these people, and The Post, remember that under President Dwight Eisenhower, the top marginal rate on the highest earners was 90 percent. As president, John F. Kennedy lowered it to 70 percent. And I don't remember as much outrage from the wealthy during those years as we are hearing now because tax rates will go up about 3 percentage points. And The Post highlights this burden as a 19 percent increase.
ALLEN AHEARN
Dickerson
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Gail Johnson may not consider herself wealthy, but in fact she is. No matter how she figures it, she and her husband make more than $500,000 a year, even if involves putting her profits from her business onto her personal income tax return.
I'm sorry. If I made $500,000 a year, I'd be jumping for joy instead of complaining about the amount of taxes I pay.
DEBORAH NIXON
Palmyra, Va.
