[Displaced Flames fan]

Originally Posted by seattleflamer

You're referring to Earned Income Credit when you're talking about refunds on no federal tax liability. I assume you realize that all EIC recipients pay regressive taxes like sales tax on clothes and property tax (from landlords who pass the cost to the renters) as examples.

EIC is intended to mitigate those types of regressive taxes that affect EIC recipients disproportionately on the taxes they pay on basic needs.

IMO, the most egregious of all taxes that EIC receipents pay into is the 15% FICA/payroll tax which helps pay for medicare and social security up to the cap of ~$110K of income in 2012. Though that is slightly less since Congress passed a FICA tax holiday for the last two years.

The unfair part is any income over the cap of ~$110K is FICA free which means anyone lucky enough to make more than $110K is saving that the SS portion of the FICA tax to infinity. That is the very definition of regressive.

And the real kicker is since Reagan, the FICA contributions are used to pay for current government expenditures to make up for the lost revenue from those same Reagan tax cuts.

I suggest if you removed the FICA cap, that would go a long way to address the path to a solvent and, at the very least, a fairer funding mechanism for SS.

The Medicare portion of FICA is ridiculously underfunded by all FICA payers at a unsustainable 1.5% considering the benefits doled out.

I pay my full FICA to the cap and get almost another $2K in FICA savings while the rest of you schelps making less than $110K including the working poor are essentially subsidizing my full amount of SS and free medicare at 65.

Fair in your books, right?

I wasn't referring to EIC specifically. You certainly don't have to qualify for the Earned Income Credit to have a negative tax bill.

I have no idea why you wrote a huge post out as if I were against this situation. You seem to have taken an issue with me on something and it has now somehow interefered with your ability to retain and/or comprehend what you've read from me.

Same thing for Flash. I don't get it.