May 31, 2013
Wealthy Win Lion's Share of Major Tax Breaks
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 1 MIN.
A government study says wealthier households benefit significantly more than lower earners from big tax breaks such as deductions for mortgage interest and charitable giving.
The Congressional Budget Office says more than half the benefits of 10 major tax breaks go to the one-fifth of U.S. households at the top of the income scale.
The top 1 percent of earners reap 17 percent of these tax breaks. Those breaks also include preferential treatment of investment income and the deduction for sales and income taxes paid to state and local governments.
Other breaks, such as the per-child tax credit of up to $1,000 and the earned income tax credit claimed by low-income households, generally benefit those in lower income ranges.
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
