Urban Institute

October 31, 2008

Obama and McCain Tax Plans Explained

According to the Washington Post, new analysis by the Tax Policy Center, a joint project of the Urban Institute and the Brookings Institution, Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain are both proposing tax plans that would result in cuts for most American families. Obama’s plan gives the biggest cuts to those who make the least, while McCain would give the largest cuts to the very wealthy. For the approximately 147,000 families that make up the top 0.1 percent of the income scale, the difference between the two plans is stark. While McCain offers a $269,364 tax cut, Obama would raise their taxes, on average, by $701,885 - a difference of nearly $1 million.

Here is your tax savings based on your annual earnings:

If you make… Under McCain Under Obama
Over $2.87 mil -4.4% $270,000 +11.5% +702,000
$603,000 to $2.87 mil -3.4% $ 45,000 + 8.7% +116,000
$227,000 to $603,000 -3.1% $  7,900 0.0% -$      12
$160,000 to $227,000 -3.0% $  4,380 - 1.9% -$  2,790
$111,650 to $160,000 -2.5% $  2,615 - 2.1% -$  2,205
$ 66,355 to $111,650 - 1.4% $  1,010 - 1.8% -$  1,290
$ 37,595 to $ 66,355 - 0.7% $    319 - 2.4% -$  1,040
$ 18,980 to $ 37,595 - 0.5% $    113 - 3.6% -$    892
up to $18,980 - 0.2% $      19 - 5.5% -$    567
Average cut - 2.0% $ 1,195 - 0.3% -$    160

*the numbers have been rounded

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