The Utah Taxpayers Association has released the 3rd edition of their annual report, titled “The Beehive Family – The Tax Burden of the Bob and Brooke Beehive Family”. The report examines the annual tax burden that the typical Utah family pays based on current tax policy and tax rates for the 2022 tax year.
The report, using the five-member Beehive family as an example, examines the state and federal tax burden across income, property, sales, and other taxes to help illustrate the annual tax burden of a “typical” Utah family. The report has been created using data from the U.S. Census Bureau and several publications by the Utah State Tax Commission. Income and spending patterns have been taken from both locally and nationally collected data. The Utah Taxpayers Association made the calculations using the most recent data available.
“We are excited to once again provide this report to help educate and inform taxpayers, policymakers and elected officials about what the typical family pays each year in the various categories of taxes that we have in Utah”, said Rusty Cannon, President of the Utah Taxpayers Association. “Taxpayers might be surprised by the amount of taxes that they pay in the various areas of income, property, sales and payroll taxes. In 2022, relative to the previous year 2021, this typical family saw a reduction in state income taxes due to recent legislation and a property tax increase due to a higher valuation on their home and some tax increases by local government. They also saw a large increase in their federal income tax due to the lowering of the federal child tax credit after the temporary boost in that credit during COVID expired.
Although it is a federal issue, the Utah Taxpayers Association would like to make a special note. Once again, the typical Utah family’s highest tax burden by far continues to be federal Social Security and Medicare taxes, also known as payroll taxes or self employment taxes. That makes up over 54% of the taxes that the typical family pays. As highlighted by a recently released report by the Federal Social Security Trustees, this fund is on the precipice of insolvency. It needs to be made clear: elected officials that continue to “refuse to touch Social Security” are making an endorsement of a sudden 20% across-the-board benefit cut that will be imposed on beneficiaries of all ages and incomes within the next 11 years. In fact, during the 2026 midterm elections which are quickly approaching, Americans will be electing members to the Senate that will have to deal with this issue. It is time for taxpayers and voters to call the bluff on members of Congress and Presidential candidates that continue to hide behind this sham of a position. This looming insolvency can no longer be ignored.”
The Beehive family report will continue to help inform policymakers how proposed tax legislation will affect the typical Utah family going forward.
The report can be found at: https://utahtaxpayers.org/beehive-family-report/
