What Taxmageddon Really Means for Families

Romina Boccia / July 19, 2012

Taxmageddon is approaching closer by the day. Much of the focus has been on the impact Taxmageddon will have on the economy. But just how will this massive tax hike impact America’s most fundamental unit of society?

Families will see their taxes go up by more than $4,100—just in 2013—because of Taxmageddon. How will families pay for this huge tax hike, on top of all the other taxes they already pay, and still make ends meet?

The chart below illustrates the size of Taxmageddon’s burden on families in comparison to what families spend on some of life’s basic necessities. This tax hike is nearly as big as a family’s annual grocery bill, the amount families pay to maintain a car, or the amount families spend on utilities each year. What will families have to cut in order to feed the gluttonous federal government?

Taxmageddon will undoubtedly have a devastating impact on the U.S. economy—from destroying jobs and reducing economic growth to bringing on another recession. This is true even if Congress adopts President Obama’s plan to raise taxes on job creators by allowing the Bush-era tax policies to expire for incomes over $200,000 ($250,000 for married filers). Families will suffer directly from these impacts. As Heritage’s Curtis Dubay explained:

There are almost 13 million Americans out of work today. President Obama’s tax increase would needlessly add almost three-quarters of a million people to that already much too large number. Even those with jobs wouldn’t escape the pain of President Obama’s tax increase, as they would see their wages suffer.

Congress and the President’s political maneuvering is already slowing the economy today and putting families at even greater risk of economic harm. Lawmakers should delay no longer and stop all of Taxmageddon today.