Bill Gates' dad wants him to pay more taxes
Filed under: People
In what some may see as a scheme to redistribute wealth, Bill Gates' father wants his son and all other wealthy Washington state residents to pay more taxes. In a column he wrote for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, he said Washington state has the most regressive tax regime in the country.
He goes on to write, "Middle-class and low-income families pay much more taxes proportionally than the wealthy. Absent an income tax, our over-reliance on the sales tax and property tax also results in insufficient public revenues to fund the public services, especially education, that 21st century Washington citizens deserve and demand."
His solution is to promote a "high incomes" tax, which he says will "offset with an across-the-board cut of the state property tax." He writes about this change, "The vast majority of middle-class families would get a tax cut, the highest income families would pay an added tax (which they would get to deduct from their federal income taxes), and the children and students of our state would get a boost in the billions of dollars for their education..."
His views are not that different than what we've heard in the past from Warren Buffett, who believes the rich need to pay more taxes. He actually went to Washington to oppose a cut in taxes for the wealthy in 2007. He told Congress that the super-rich should be taxed more, not less.
Buffett is famous for his quote saying his "receptionist pays a higher portion of her salary in taxes than I do." Buffett says he pays 18 percent of his salary in taxes, while his receptionist pays almost twice that -- 33 percent. He told lawmakers in November of 2007, "Frankly an economy where my receptionist pays a lot higher tax rate than I do does not strike me as a just economy." He challenged all on the Forbes 400 list to do their own calculations and compare their tax rate with their receptionists.
Buffet added in his testimony, "I see nothing wrong with those who have been blessed by this society to give a larger portion of their income to society than somebody that's working very, very hard to make ends meet."
Lita Epstein has written more than 25 books, including Working After Retirement for Dummies.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
3-11-2009 @ 1:03PM
dave said...
I don't see any comments especially from the republicans like "joe the plumber"
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3-11-2009 @ 5:29PM
bob said...
Hey, bob the plumber here, why don't we all discuss the real problems. Misappropriation of funds, wasteful spending, lack of self control, pork, earmarks, crooked legislators, pet projects, backdoor deals, and abuse of power. I could go on and on. We Americans keep putting the same group of people into office and guess what? we keep getting the same results. It is time to take back our states and country. Ask yourself,,What is the purpose of government?????????
3-11-2009 @ 6:08PM
p lenefsky said...
Have Mr. Gates and Mr Buffet voluntarily pay all the want!!!
3-12-2009 @ 6:02AM
Bob said...
Joe the Plummer is not even a plummer. He is some loud- mouth the Republican Conservatives wanted to parade around. He admitted that he would assault every congressmen or congresswomen that got in his way.
He even admitted that he would spend most of his time in jail than in sessions with his fellow representatives. Anyone that votes for Joe the Plummer should be receive an Emergency Order of Detention.
3-11-2009 @ 1:10PM
Bob said...
Nothing is stopping Gates (either of them) from doing whatever they want with their money. If they want to support education, let them.
I don't need them telling me how to spend MY meager funds or using the power of the state to confiscate them for their redistributionist opium dreams.
To make most of your problems go away, get off yer butt, go to work, and live within your means. If you truly cannot work at a level sufficient to support yourself, you will find me among the first in line to help you out of my own pocket.
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3-11-2009 @ 6:18PM
steve said...
No offence Bob, but I am not really keen on the idea of being reliant on you to open up your wallet and give me a handout. You see, the most of us are off our butts and do live quite within our means. I need to explain to you how tired we all are in giving you a handout by so unfairly paying your share of taxes. I also need to break it to you that as an American (If you are a real one) that the government set up by the people and for the people does have the right to tell you what to do with a portion of your money. There is nothing special about you. Nothing sets you apart from us. We breath the same air, drive down the same roads, eat at the same restaurants. Why do you feel you have the right to make me live on less of my money than you?
3-11-2009 @ 2:03PM
MIKE said...
The sad thing is they DO give their money to education and other things.
What do you think they sit there and do nothing with it?
They donate millions every year to educational programs, scholarships, and buildings.
I personally know people who have donated millions to Universities and they build these extravagant computer labs etc with it.
The schools should be mandated to justify WHY and WHERE they spend such funds.
I also think that these people set up non-profit companies. they generate revenues and the profits go to whatever cause the company is set up for.
Although I do agree that they should be taxed more, if we put the government in between where we get the money from and where the money goes to, then it's LESS efficient.
GATES -> SCHOOL = 100%
GATES -> GOVERNMENT -> SCHOOL = 60% IF THAT. It usually goes to MISC PROJECTS like Secret Service or something.
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3-11-2009 @ 3:33PM
Sam said...
The best money winner for the nation is to do away with the current IRS system, and go to a SALES TAX on general items. Tax all items but groceries and medical, that way all illegals and tax dodgers pay their fair share. The more you buy, the more money you have, the more the government gets in a sales tax format. Then see how much cutting the IRS saves the government in legal and adminstrative fees.
Think about it!
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3-11-2009 @ 4:03PM
Cathy said...
How about everyone who has an income pays a 5% flat tax...with no loopholes, no deductions and no filing. If you earn a thousand dollars, you pay 5%...if you earn one hundred million dollars, you pay 5%. everyones receives benefits from the government, everyone should pay taxes. and no filing would eliminate 3/4 of the IRS which would be a huge savings and it would stop Congress from social engineering with tax policy. our current tax system is archaic, cumbersome and expensive to comply with....we need something different and simple and fair. A consumption tax could work also...we still would only need 1/4 of the IRS and there would be no filing also....
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3-11-2009 @ 4:04PM
homebuyer said...
We should have a straight tax system.. Each working American pays the same percentage of tax no matter how much you make... Why should anyone that is successful have to bare the burden of others when in the end a person making a million a year and pays say 10 percent on taxes actually is paying more no matter how you slice up the pie..
Straight percentage taxing the only fair thing to do..
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3-11-2009 @ 4:05PM
Rick said...
He already made his billions-what does he care.
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3-11-2009 @ 5:59PM
Martin said...
He makes all his money with "CHEAP LABOR", from INDIA!
3-11-2009 @ 4:19PM
amerendin said...
Nobody is stopping him from paying more taxes.
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3-11-2009 @ 4:14PM
CherAz50 said...
Here it is 2009. It took us the better part of the last ten years to finally get ahead with our small business. Our first full day in our new building, the office, was on 9-11. Everything was done. The desks, files in place, computers humming, toilet paper in the bathroom, pepsi's in the frig' new everything. 9-11 hit that morning and on my first day to our office.....I was late getting there for being glued to Fox news for 5hrs. Thank goodness, I work for my husband. Now, our company pension plan has lost over $200,000.00. If we do happen to have Two-Hundred and Somthing "left over" after tax season, that always go toward another year in business (we've NEVER bank rolled on LOANS, for petes sake), and this administration talks like if you make over $200,000 - then your "rich" How STUPID is THAT? Why didn't the government bail US out when our costs sky-rocketed in the last two years. Materials, fuel for the trucks, etc. I hate Washington. They are clueless! Im just so happy our HOME in PAID OFF. All the people with degrees in New York.......its a good day to be a redneck with a great work ethic. Bill Gates and his Daddy are jerk-offs, too.
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3-11-2009 @ 6:25PM
Terry said...
You're right on the money. For the past 5 years our family business has been completeing against Cemex. They have been slashing prices to a hair over cost to squeeze all the little businesses out. Well guess what, they went too low too fast and made BIG purchases (Rinker for 16BILLION) and are on the verge of imploding.
That would give us all a chance for survival. So what help does this small business get? Tax leins so we can't get credit to restructure loans. What does Cemex get? (A MEXICAN company, not american) a bailout! WTH? Where is OUR help, tax cuts, or bail out? We are an AMERICAN company on the verge of going out of business while the MEXICAN company gets the helping hand.
3-11-2009 @ 4:18PM
dave said...
We should all thank Mr Gates for his overwhelming generosity.
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3-11-2009 @ 4:20PM
Dave said...
How much is enough - a billion, 2? How much money do people really need to satisfy their everyday needs.
How much is needed to satisfy their egos. Eventually the comfort level of the masses will diminish to the point where radical action is inevitable. History will repeat yet again.
Viva la Middle-class revolution!
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3-24-2009 @ 3:39PM
leon said...
Man, please get off your tail and go and get your own life!
3-11-2009 @ 4:23PM
Sammy said...
I thinkyou have to look at what's considered rich. Gates father is speaking of those making millions. Unfortunately, our leaders think anyone earning 250K is rich. To get an absolute proportionate tax system you'd have to go with a flat tax. Under that you pay your percentage period. The higher income earners pay more but it's proportionate to their income. I personally could support a consumption tax. You spend the money you pay tax on it. You know what to plan for when you make the purchase. It should be on everything but homes, food, prescriptions. That seems the only true equitable way.
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3-11-2009 @ 4:25PM
BHarrison said...
Well, wouldn't NOW be a good time to implement a "FLAT TAX" where everyone pays a certainl per centage of their income in taxes . . . and it might be "graduated" in accordiance with one's income level.
Meanwhile delete all of the tax loop hoes for the wealthy.
Of course the politicians don't like that because "playing with the tax rates and "deductions" is a tool used by the federal government to "stimulate business" supposedly.
The FACT is that the WEALTHY ALWAYS PAY LESS IN TAXES, percentage wise, than the middle or lower classes. The wealthy gets wealtier and the poor poorer.
It is time to end these inequities.
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