by Sam Patterson

Created on: August 18, 2009   Last Updated: August 21, 2009

This question may be difficult to answer. What constitutes a 'fair share' is certainly subjective! However, if one takes a look at the numbers the answer becomes clear: the rich pay their fair share of taxes, and then some.

The statistics show that a small minority of the wealthiest pay a large percentage of our income taxes. According to IRS data, the wealthiest 1% of taxpayers pays a whopping 40.4% of our country's income tax. The top half of taxpayers in America pays 97% of all the income tax, meaning the bottom half pays only 3%. In fact, nearly 40% of all Americans pay no income tax at all, and many of those will actually receive money because of tax credits.

Obviously the rich take home far, far more revenue than those at the bottom, but because of their higher income, and the fact that they are in higher tax brackets, they pay the vast majority of the income taxes in our country. It can be said unequivocally that the rich carry the tax burden of the United States.

This leads to the question of whether or not this is a fair share. As I said earlier, 'fair share' is subjective. Some would contend that three million Americans at the top paying more than the rest of the 133 million taxpayers combined is not enough. They should pay it all. After all, 'they can afford it'. I have often heard this argument for increasing taxes on the rich.

However, I question who is able to make such a judgment. Perhaps the government should simply determine what everyone can comfortably live on (I propose $150,000 annually for a single individual), and then take any amount which they earn on top of that.

This would satisfy the 'they can afford it' argument easily. My argument against my own proposal is that the government has no right to do so, just as they have no right to disproportionately tax one segment of the population more than another. Additionally, the more heavily taxed the wealthy are, the less incentive they have to earn so much money, and they will earn less, meaning less products and services, higher unemployment, and less tax revenue.

The rich do more than simply provide the majority of taxes for our country. Many of the rich own small to medium size businesses, employing many other American citizens. They are rich because their businesses are successful, and with that success their employees benefit, as well as those consumers who use their products or services.

Anyone who is fair would instantly recognize the rich are paying their dues. It would be quite a stretch for anyone to propose forcing the rich minority, who already bear the tax burden for the majority, to pay any more than they already do, and still call it 'fair'. Forcing the rich minority of this country to bear the cost for the majority's expenses is indeed unfair. Do the rich pay their fair share? Yes, and then they pay much more.

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