There are plenty of hidden taxes you didn’t mention:

1. The so-called “employer’s share” of FICA and Medicare, which is really paid by the employee. (The only difference between the employer share and the employee share is that the employee doesn’t pay income taxes on the employer share.

2. Gas taxes – I think they’re at or above 50 cents a gallon now, between state and federal.

3. Property taxes. If you’re a renter, you never are told the amount of property tax you are paying. I own a rental property, and a full 33% of the rent goes to property taxes. If you’re an owner but pay your property taxes through your mortgage company, there’s a good chance you have little idea how much you really pay in taxes. (By the way, you already are paying for your library through your local property taxes. Mine costs me about $128 a year. Leave a donation if you want, but don’t feel obligated.)

For example, back in the 1930s, Congress mandated that all telephone companies providing interstate service have to contribute to the Universal Service Fund. It was initially designed to make sure that schools, libraries and other public services received telephone service, plus to ensure that rural areas – where costs would be much higher – could be connected at reasonable rates.

It’s usually passed on as a fee to consumers on our bill. But even if it didn’t stand out as a separate tax and fee, it would be added into our calculated rate somehow.

And while it is tempting to say, “Okay, telephone lines have been run EVERYWHERE since the 1930s, why not drop the fee?” the simple truth is that ongoing maintenance is required to keep our phone lines up – and that’s a public safety issue, as well as one of access. Without the fund, the cost would still exist – and be paid somehow, by some authority.

I’m not sure I want those things hidden. They’re baffling, but right now I have the option of spending hours to figure out what my bill covers. If it were all wrapped up in my usage fees, I might not be able to see it.

I don’t think that’s actually better.

Unless we switched to a flat tax higher than 15%, then we would be raising the taxes on such individuals.

Last year, I looked into the taxes (only “taxes” identified on bills) and determined that my tax burden was nearly 60%.
Let me explain… I added the payroll taxes deducted from my paycheck, the sales taxes on store receipts, the taxes on utility bills, property taxes, excise taxes, income taxes (if my payroll tax withholdings fall short), self-employment taxes, and fuel taxes (included in $/gallon at the pump).

As a percent of my gross pay, my tax burden was nearly 60%. FYI–I’m in the 15% income tax bracket and I spend 100% of my income. So for every $1 I make, 60 cents goes to pay taxes. And only 40 cents remains. Any tax increase will dirctly increase my tax burden. Wake up America!