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A regressive tax is a tax like the gas tax or sales tax. Our income tax is progressive, which means as you make more you pay more. European countries and the USA both have progressive income taxes. Europe has a mixture of regressive and progressive taxes, as does the USA, that make up their tax structure.
Yes, and the overall effect in European countries is a total effective tax rate that is regressive.
The article even explains it in plain English for you:
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"European social democracies were only able to develop the programs they did because they used efficient consumption taxes that didn't lower growth as much as progressive income taxes, particularly those on capital income. European countries needed tax systems that could raise a lot of money without hurting growth, and only regressive consumption taxes fit the bill.
...Prasad and Deng found that the progressivity of countries' tax codes is negatively correlated with the amount of redistribution they do. In English: The less progressive the code, the more progressive the system."
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Originally Posted by Winter_Sucks
They tax more and have a more generous welfare state.
They tax low and middle income earners at a higher rate than they tax the rich, but then also provide more generous social and welfare benefits. That's the whole point of the article.
If you want more income equality and better social and welfare benefits in the U.S., the only way to do that is to adopt the European countries' overall regressive tax systems: low and middle income earners will have to pay higher total effective tax rates than the rich.
The article even explains it in plain English for you:
They tax low and middle income earners at a higher rate than they tax the rich, but then also provide more generous social and welfare benefits. That's the whole point of the article.
If you want more income equality and better social and welfare benefits in the U.S., the only way to do that is to adopt the European countries' overall regressive tax systems: low and middle income earners will have to pay higher total effective tax rates than the rich.
And the low income voters will never agree to it. Can you imagine the outrage from the people who pay no federal taxes if a VAT was implemented?
The article even explains it in plain English for you:
They tax low and middle income earners at a higher rate than they tax the rich, but then also provide more generous social and welfare benefits. That's the whole point of the article.
If you want more income equality and better social and welfare benefits in the U.S., the only way to do that is to adopt the European countries' overall regressive tax systems: low and middle income earners will have to pay higher total effective tax rates than the rich.
Which European country taxes the poor and middle class at a higher rate than the wealthy?
You don't even understand the simple term regressive tax.
A regressive tax is not a tax that taxes poor and middle class people at a higher rate than the wealthy. A regressive tax is a tax that everyone pays at the same rate regardless of how poor or rich they are, for example that would be the gas tax or sales tax. Yes, Europe has regressive taxes as does the USA.
And the low income voters will never agree to it. Can you imagine the outrage from the people who pay no federal taxes if a VAT was implemented?
Yet they whine, complain, and demand European-style benefits (like national health care) but refuse to paythe European-style regressive taxes that fund those benefits.
The European countries are NEGATIVE on the progressivity of their taxes. Even more so when ALL taxes are evaluated.
It's plain as day. The charts show it, and the article specifically states it:
Quote:
"European social democracies were only able to develop the programs they did because they used efficient consumption taxes that didn't lower growth as much as progressive income taxes, particularly those on capital income. European countries needed tax systems that could raise a lot of money without hurting growth, and only regressive consumption taxes fit the bill.
...Prasad and Deng found that the progressivity of countries' tax codes is negatively correlated with the amount of redistribution they do. In English: The less progressive the code, the more progressive the system."
You got any name of a European country that doesn't have a progressive income tax?
Is there any European country in which people only pay income tax and no other taxes? No. That's why the total of direct taxes (income, property, etc., but excludes VAT and sales taxes) are regressive, and when VAT and sales taxes are added to the analysis the tax rates are even more regressive.
Is there any European country in which people only pay income tax and no other taxes? No. That's why the total of direct taxes (excludes VAT and sales taxes) are regressive, and when VAT and sales taxes are added to the analysis the tax rates are even more regressive.
That's what I've been saying. Europe has a progressive income tax and regressive taxes and they tax all of their citizens a lot higher, including the wealthy, to pay for a more generous welfare state. France taxes their wealthiest citizens at a 75% rate, which I think is way too high.
We should adopt a VAT and raise the gas tax to pay for our programs. We could also get rid of a lot of our nice deals we give the wealthy and to corporations that are a part of our tax code, which your favorite link doesn't seem to mention.
That's what I've been saying. Europe has a progressive income tax and regressive taxes and they tax all of their citizens a lot higher, including the wealthy, to pay for a more generous welfare state.
Yes, they tax all of their citizens more, but their low and middle income earners pay higher tax rates than do their high income earners. That's what regressive taxes means.
Quote:
We should adopt a VAT and raise the gas tax to pay for our programs.
Yes.
Quote:
We could also get rid of a lot of our nice deals we give the wealthy and to corporations that are a part of our tax code, which your favorite link doesn't seem to mention.
There's no way to get European-style welfare and social benefits without charging low and middle income earners a higher total tax rate than the rich pay, like the European countries do.
Actually, it does make the point that our progressive tax system is the problem:
If that's your argument, then you are wishing more than thinking. Because those sentences do not make the point you are claiming they make.
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