By Martin Wisckol

“While Republican lawmakers appear unified against tax increases and many Tea Party activists want existing rates rolled back, statistics consistently show that federal taxes are at a historic low.

“For the past two years, a family of four earning the median income has paid less in federal income taxes than at any time since at least 1955, according to the Tax Policy Center. All federal, state and local taxes combined are a lower percentage of per-capita income than at any time since the 1960s, according to the Tax Foundation. The highest income-tax bracket is its lowest since 1992. At 35 percent, it’s well below the 50 percent mark of much of the 1980s and the 70 percent bracket of the 1970s.

“Even the combined California state and local taxes, while tied for fourth highest in the nation, aren’t particularly high for the state. In 2009 – the most recent year for which data are available – they accounted for 10.6 percent of Californians’ per-capita income, just slightly above the 25-year average of 10.3 percent.”

Read full article here.