The Evil Rich
California's definition of "rich" is going lower and lower, even as the cost of living (and especially the cost of buying a house) is going higher and higher. Writing in the Orange County Register, taxpayer-activist Jon Coupal explains:
Under a plan announced by Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez, those "rich" people making more than $142,582 will see their taxes go up by 7 percent to a marginal tax rate of 10 percent. The "super rich," those making more than $285,164, will see their tax rate go up by 17 percent.
If the Democrats are successful in placing this "tax the rich" scheme on the ballot, some voters may be tempted to approve it because it will not affect them. It was the late Sen. Russell Long of Louisiana who summed up the approach this way, "Don't tax you, don't tax me, tax that fellow behind the tree." After all, it's no great sacrifice to vote to tax other people, and the "rich" are always a tempting target. (It is interesting to note that Speaker Núñez, whose pay will go to $127,512 this year, plus a daily tax-free allowance of $138, would not not see his taxes go up.)
However, before anyone is tempted to support the Democrats' proposal, he might want to look at how fast the definition of "rich" for tax purposes has declined. Just last November, voters approved another soak-the-rich measure, Proposition 63, the mental health tax that increased the levy by 10 percent on those making $1 million or more. In just seven months, the political definition of rich has declined by 85 percent to just over $142,000. If we were to continue at this rate, by the beginning of July, those making minimum wage could expect to be classified as rich....
[W]hen the "wealthy" include tradesmen and nurses headed to Las Vegas for a lower cost of living - including taxes - the rest of California ought to be worried. If those making more and paying more in taxes flee the state, those left behind may discover that it is they who will inherit a higher tax burden.
As a percentage of the population, people making upwards of $142K are indeed an elite. But, at least in California, they don't feel particularly rich. "In Los Angeles," a friend once said, "the middle class is people making between $200,000 and $800,000." I might not inflate the range that much, but speaking in psychological class, rather than income, terms, she's right.