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Show Editorial ... Non-Tax Supported Worker Now In Minority In U.S. As taxes continually spiral upward, along with prices, an interesting report came out this week from the Utah Taxpayers Ass., quoting a recent study by Ford Motor Company economists. The report stated that there are more people being supported by taxes in the United States than there are people working in the private sector of the economy to pay those taxes. According to the report, there are 80,655,000 persons on tax supported incomes, compared with 71,650,000 working in the private sector. Of course, included in the tax-supported sector were those adults on various welfare and retirement programs, military personnel on active duty and the disabled and unemployed. The UTA report goes on to break down the number of persons in Utah who, in addition to carrying the federal burden of tax beneficiaries through federal taxes, are supporting another 166,000 persons on a state basis. This includes state and local government employees numbering 70,900; adults on the state welfare rolls, 13,092; insured unemployed, 20,000; retired government workers drawing benefits, 8,340; persons receiving food stamps, 54,277. Of course many of these people whose salaries are paid from tax dollars, are themselves taxpayers. However, if the Ford study is accurate, the non-tax-supported 'person is now among the minority jnstead of the, majority as in past year. Additional UTA figures show that 33,626 children are receiving state welfare aid. The UTA stated that the average private sector employment in Utah for 1974 was 327,900, which means that for every tax beneficiary in Utah, there are almost two people working in the private sector to pay the taxes. Some other interesting facts concerning the taxpayers' plight. In the past 10 years, the average wages of state employees increased 38-percent faster than the average earnings of employees in private industry. The number of state government workers increased 27-percent faster than total non-farm employment increased. The average wage of the private working taxpayer has gone up 14-percent since 1972. However, in some government offices, wages have gone up from 63 to 87-percent in this same period. The last legislature, under pressure, passed a rich new public employee's retirement package. Taxpayers' costs will soar from $3.6-million to $20-million by 1979. As it is, nearly a third of the average taxpayer's income goes for taxes, much of which goes to pay the wages of an even greater number of persons whose incomes depend on tax dollars. The statistics are clear: more and more government supported by less people who are paying more taxes. It's way past time that the working taxpayer gets some help by less government and from that majority of persons who have to make it through life on the taxpayers' efforts. After all, you can shear a sheep twice a year, but you can only skin it once. |
