Nonpayers
During 2007, Tax Foundation economists estimate that roughly 46.6 million tax returns faced a zero or negative tax liability. These are the so-called non-payers, people whose exemptions, deductions and credits wiped out any tax that would have been due. As a result, every dollar that was withheld from their paychecks during the year was refunded. In about half the cases, substantial additional money was "refunded" to the tax filer, although that portion is classified as a government expenditure since it is actually welfare spending, not a tax refund.
Almost a third of all tax returns, 32.6 percent of 143 million federal tax returns filed, were nonpaying in 2007, the most recent year for which IRS data is final. The percentage for 2007 is the second highest, a slight tick down from the all-time highest in 2006, when 33.0 percent of tax filers paid nothing.
Note: 2007 is currently the latest year for which IRS data on this topic is available.
Related Blog Entries
- Occupy CBO: A Misleading Report on Income Inequality, by David S. Logan and William McBride, October 26, 2011
- Cain's 9-9-9 Plan, Nonpayers, and the Top 1%, by Scott A. Hodge, October 19, 2011
- Debunking a Myth Before Further Propagation, by David S. Logan, September 28, 2011
- A Response to Criticism of "Warren Buffett's Call for Higher Taxes on the Rich Doesn't Fit the Facts" and "Warren Buffett's Proposed Tax Hikes Would Provide Insignificant Revenue" , by David S. Logan, August 25, 2011
- Maybe the Rich Can Afford to Pay More Tax, But Should They?, by William McBride, August 24, 2011
- New Podcast on Taxing the Rich with David Logan, by Richard Morrison, August 19, 2011
- Warren Buffett's Call for Higher Taxes on the Rich Doesn’t Fit the Facts, by David S. Logan, August 15, 2011
- Shouldn't Nonpayers Also Share in Cost of Deficit Reduction?, by Scott A. Hodge, July 26, 2011
- Cutting Even the Worst Tax Breaks is not “Cutting Spending”, by Scott A. Hodge, June 29, 2011
- Tax Foundation Testifies before Congress on Need for Fundamental Tax Reform, by TF Staff, March 10, 2011
- Which Age Groups Bear the Largest Share of the Tax Burden?, by Scott A. Hodge, August 4, 2010
- Millions Pay No Income or Payroll Taxes Thanks to Refundable Credits, by Scott A. Hodge, June 16, 2010
- Its Payday, Not Tax Day for Millions of Americans, by Scott A. Hodge, April 15, 2010
- Tax Foundation in Investor's Business Daily: A Nation of Takers, by Natasha Altamirano, April 7, 2010
- CNBC: Tax Fairness Reaches a Tipping Point, by Natasha Altamirano, March 25, 2010
- Nearly One Third of All Tax Filers Paid No Federal Income Taxes in 2007, by Natasha Altamirano, December 4, 2009
- E.J. Dionne Defends Obama “The Re-Distributor”, by Scott A. Hodge, March 2, 2009
- Scott Hodge Interview on Accuracy in Media's Podcast, and This Week's Best of the Blogosphere, by Matt Moon, November 7, 2008
- Tax Foundation in the Editorial Pages: Nonpayers, Corporate Taxes, and the Index, by Matt Moon, October 13, 2008
- Can Taxes Be Cut Below Zero?: Touted Tax Plans, Transfers, and Net Beneficiaries, by Joseph Henchman, September 23, 2008
- Stimulus, Non-Payers, and Class Warfare, by Scott A. Hodge and Nate Bailey, January 23, 2008
- Tax Revenue and Distributional Effects of Lowering 10% Bracket to Zero for 2008, by Patrick Fleenor and Gerald Prante, January 18, 2008
- Economic Benefits of Fiscal Stimulus Likely to Be Small, by William Ahern, January 18, 2008
- Baucus and Birnbaum Go Bonkers Over AMT, by TF Staff, December 6, 2007
- Congressional Budget Office Report Shows Federal Income Tax Becoming More Progressive, by Curtis S. Dubay, January 8, 2007
- Non-Payers, Tax Reform and the Size of Government, by Andrew Chamberlain, December 21, 2005
