You're mistaken. The poor pay proportionately more sales tax.
It's called a regressive tax. >From dictionary.com: regressive tax A tax that takes a higher percentage of low incomes than high ones. Sales taxes, especially on food, clothing, medicine, and other basic necessities are widely cited as examples of regressive taxes. > Disproportionate to what? Take sales tax - the poor tend > to pay less > > sales tax, as more of their expenditures are on > non-tax items such as > > food. With the earned income tax credit, their income > tax can go > > negative, offsetting their payroll tax in whole or in > part (usually in > > part as far as I know). Add in various forms of means > tested > > assistance, and there are indeed some who on balance > are net > > recipients rather than tax payers. > > You make some general assumptions there. > > Two of the three states I have lived in tax all food and > general merchandise. TN has a high local sales tax 9.75% > and we paid that on all groceries and GM except > Prescriptions. TN had no state income tax. I presently > live in AL. and they too charge full sales tax on all > groceries and GM except for Prescriptions and we do have a > state income tax. Local sales tax is 9%. > > Oh the threshold for state income tax is low. I think AL > has the lowest threshold for state income tax for all > states. > > How is that not disproportionate? I have to spend most of > my income as it is not high enough to afford me a lot of > discretionary income. Therefore I pay tax on most of my > purchases. > > Stewart > > Rev. Stewart A. Marshall > mailto:[email protected] > Prince of Peace www.princeofpeaceozark.org > Ozark, AL SL 82 > > > ************************************************************************* > ** List info, subscription management, list rules, > archives, privacy ** > ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at > http://www.cguys.org/ ** > ************************************************************************* ************************************************************************* ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *************************************************************************
