claim: according to david cay johnston, "the average american pays about 22 percent of their income to federal taxes. the richest 400 americans … pay about 16 percent of their income to federal taxes."
author: chris hayes
evidence_1: feb 24, 2010 ... the effective federal income tax rate for the 400 taxpayers with the very highest incomes has declined by nearly half over the past two decades, even as their pre-tax incomes have grown five times larger, new irs data show.[1]the top 400 households paid 16.6 percent of their income in federal individual ...
evidence_2: also, david cay johnston (2011) has written a column about the differences among the top 1%, based on 2009 irs information.) as you read through the facts and ... and the top 1% of income earners actually pay a smaller percentage of their incomes to taxes than the 9% just below them. these findings are discussed in ...
evidence_3: the fortunate 400. by david cay johnston. june 6, 2012. six american families paid no federal income taxes in 2009 while making something on the order of $200 million each. ... these families reported an average income of $202.4 million, down for the second year as the great recession slashed their capital gains.
evidence_4: the arab winter convinced many that the middle east is destined to be a hopelessly repressive region. but peel away the layers and it's clear there's both hope and opportunity.
evidence_5: in a 2005 new york times article, reporter david cay johnston wrote that “the 400 taxpayers with the highest incomes … now pay income, medicare and social security taxes amounting to virtually the same percentage of their incomes as people making $50,000 to $75,000.”[54] this article failed to account for the burden ...