We-Have-to-Pass-the-Bill-To-Find-Out-What’s-in-It Fact of the Day
The higher Medicare tax is going to hit the middle class after all:
[A] key Medicare provision in Obamacare is the return of Carter-era “bracket creep” in the tax system. Initially, the law’s steep payroll-tax hike of 0.9 percent of wages will apply only to individual taxpayers with annual incomes exceeding $200,000 and couples with incomes exceeding $250,000. But those income thresholds will not increase with general inflation in the economy. Consequently, as the years pass, more and more Americans, including the middle class, will pay it…. Overall, the Medicare tax hikes in the new law are expected to raise about $1.4 trillion over 75 years, in present-value terms.
Full analysis from James Capretta here.
Surprise! Our taxes are going up.
Something tells me there are many other unpleasant surprises in this bill.
I think this is one of 19 new taxes.
“Carter-era “bracket creep” in the tax system”
Carter era? What are you talking about. Did Nixon add inflation indexing to the tax system? NO. Reagan, NO!. Bush 1, NO!! Bush 2 NO!!!. As far as I know, no part of the federal personal income tax system has ever been inflation indexed. Social Security payouts are inflation indexed. Reagan’s Social Security fix raised rates in several steps, some of which occurred after he left office. But besides demagoguery, what’s the point of mentioning Carter?
“But besides demagoguery, what’s the point of mentioning Carter?’
None. I also like stretching it out over 75 years so you can get a big number. Maybe we should make future budget estimates out over 1,000 years. Then we could get some even bigger numbers.
Steve
I like how you actually have to stretch the numbers out of 75 years to just come up with the amount of money the Obama Administration has spent in 1 year. Sounds like a clear demonstration of the current administration’s lousy fiscal policies.