Raising Federal Taxes in the United States

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Raising Taxes in the United States

Federal income tax is a major topic of debate among many citizens in the United States today.  Most middle class Americans would prefer not to see federal income tax increases because that will be more money taken out of their hard earned paychecks.  However, the middle class may not have it as bad as some would expect.  Federal income tax rates are hitting all-time lows in recent decades.  “In 2000, the year before the 2001 tax cut that President Bush and Congress enacted, the median-income family of four paid 8.0 percent of its income in individual income taxes, according to Tax Policy Center estimates — a smaller share than in any year since 1967” (Marr & Brunet, 2011, para. 5).  So the percentage of taxes taken from most median income families’ paychecks has been on the decline starting in the 21st century.  While raising federal income tax might not be the most popular option in the majority of Americans minds, there are still definitely pros and cons to every topic of debate.  Some of the pros of raising federal income tax would include an increase in government revenue, national health benefits, shared wealth among financial classes, and aid in reducing national deficits.  Some of the cons of raising the federal income tax include it being an unstable source of income and decreased job creation.  If raising federal income taxes has so many pros and cons to weigh, what is the right thing to do?  Do the cons of raising federal income tax outweigh the pros or is it time that the United States Government starts to increase the percentage of income taken out of Americans’ paychecks?