'We stand against the 499ers!'
Most of the talk about President Obama's jobs plan has focused on its proposals for creating jobs, and rightly so. But his plan is also fully paid for, and while Republicans would have opposed the plan even if it weren't paid for, their rhetoric has focused on the fact that it would raise taxes.
Keeping that in mind, it's worth noting that the plan (as supported by a majority of the Senate and as offered in individual component pieces) would only impact 1 in 500 American taxpayers—and not until 2013. Courtesy of Greg Sargent, here are the numbers:
I asked the Citizens for Tax Justice to analyze this surtax proposal — how many taxpayers it would impact nationwide; how much they would have to pay on average in additional taxes; and what percentage of their income that would represent. CTJ graciously agreed, and calculated the numbers using their microsimulation tax model, which is described here. Here are CTJ’s totals, which would take effect in 2013:
* If the new infrastructure proposal were enacted, the surtax on millionaires would impact a grand total of 345,532 taxpayers nationwide — or 0.2 percent of American taxpayers.
* If the new infrastructure proposal were enacted, the 0.7 percent surtax would amount to all of $13,457 on average for the millionaires that would pay it. Given that their average income is $2,923,000, this means they would be paying on average an additional 1/217 of their overall income, or just over an additional 0.4 percent. That’s less than one half of one percent.
This number, obviously, would have been even smaller if the state aid package — with an even smaller millionaire surtax — had passed.
* In a large majority of states, fewer than 5,000 taxpayers in each state would feel these surtaxes. In around half the states, fewer than 3,000 in each would be impacted. In most states, 0.2 percent or fewer of taxpayers would pay the surtax.
To recap: Republicans are objecting to new infrastructure spending because they don't want the top 1/500th of American taxpayers to pay an average of 1/217th more of their income in taxes. And the most pathetic thing is that they see the jobs bill as an assault by the 499 out of 500 Americans who would' the impacted on the 1 who will, even though the truth is that a jobs bill will make America a better place for every single American, rich, poor, or in between.