shockedcanadian
Diamond Member
- Aug 6, 2012
- 31,131
- 28,435
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After hearing one of the worst policy proposals in history in the U.S, a tax on unrealized Capital Gains; I wonder why America wants to follow our footsteps.
The American Dream is disappearing and your agencies look the other way in the face of corruption.
www.thestar.com
Every year at the Fraser Institute, we calculate the total tax bill — which includes income taxes, property taxes, sales taxes, fuel taxes, etc. — for the average Canadian family. This year we found the average family paid 43.0 per cent of its annual income in taxes in 2023. That is more than it spent on basic necessities such as food, clothing and housing combined, and significantly higher than the 33.5 per cent it paid in 1961.
Put differently, the average family’s tax bill has increased 2,705 per cent since 1961 — or 180.3 per cent after adjusting for inflation.
And yet, in a recent column, Star contributing columnist Linda McQuaig said we’re “distorting the public debate over taxes” by publishing these facts while stating that the effective tax rate the average family pays has only “increased by 28 per cent since 1961.”
Presumably, she arrived at her 28 per cent figure by calculating the change in the share of income going to taxes from 33.5 per cent (in 1961) to 43.0 per cent (in 2023). And yes, that’s one way to measure tax increases. But again, the inflation-adjusted dollar value — what the average family actually pays — of the tax bill has increased by 180.3 per cent. That’s not distortion, that’s explaining the increase in terms everyone can understand.
Of course, these aren’t simply academic points. Taxes, particularly at a time when families are struggling with the cost of living, have real-world effects. According to a recent poll, 74 per cent of respondents feel the average family is overtaxed, and 80 per cent believe the average family should pay 40 per cent or less of its income in total taxes.
The American Dream is disappearing and your agencies look the other way in the face of corruption.
We’re getting lousy value for the taxes we pay in Canada
If governments across Canada want to leave more money in the pockets of Canadians, they should reduce taxes.
www.thestar.com
Every year at the Fraser Institute, we calculate the total tax bill — which includes income taxes, property taxes, sales taxes, fuel taxes, etc. — for the average Canadian family. This year we found the average family paid 43.0 per cent of its annual income in taxes in 2023. That is more than it spent on basic necessities such as food, clothing and housing combined, and significantly higher than the 33.5 per cent it paid in 1961.
Put differently, the average family’s tax bill has increased 2,705 per cent since 1961 — or 180.3 per cent after adjusting for inflation.
And yet, in a recent column, Star contributing columnist Linda McQuaig said we’re “distorting the public debate over taxes” by publishing these facts while stating that the effective tax rate the average family pays has only “increased by 28 per cent since 1961.”
Presumably, she arrived at her 28 per cent figure by calculating the change in the share of income going to taxes from 33.5 per cent (in 1961) to 43.0 per cent (in 2023). And yes, that’s one way to measure tax increases. But again, the inflation-adjusted dollar value — what the average family actually pays — of the tax bill has increased by 180.3 per cent. That’s not distortion, that’s explaining the increase in terms everyone can understand.
Of course, these aren’t simply academic points. Taxes, particularly at a time when families are struggling with the cost of living, have real-world effects. According to a recent poll, 74 per cent of respondents feel the average family is overtaxed, and 80 per cent believe the average family should pay 40 per cent or less of its income in total taxes.
