Figure 6
Average federal tax rates are either the same or lower than they were 20 years ago: Average federal tax rates over time, by percentile, 1979–2014
| Year | Lowest quintile | 2nd quintile | Middle quintile | 4th quintile | 81-90 | 91-95 | 96-99 | Top 1% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | 9.3% | 15.0% | 19.1% | 21.7% | 23.6% | 25.2% | 27.1% | 35.1% |
| 1980 | 8.9% | 14.7% | 19.0% | 21.8% | 24.0% | 25.5% | 27.4% | 33.1% |
| 1981 | 9.6% | 15.2% | 19.4% | 22.3% | 24.5% | 25.8% | 27.2% | 30.5% |
| 1982 | 9.8% | 14.0% | 18.1% | 20.6% | 22.6% | 23.7% | 24.5% | 26.8% |
| 1983 | 11.1% | 14.0% | 17.5% | 20.1% | 22.0% | 22.9% | 23.5% | 26.8% |
| 1984 | 12.1% | 14.9% | 18.0% | 20.3% | 22.1% | 23.0% | 23.5% | 27.0% |
| 1985 | 11.8% | 15.1% | 18.2% | 20.5% | 22.3% | 23.2% | 23.6% | 26.1% |
| 1986 | 11.7% | 15.0% | 18.2% | 20.6% | 22.5% | 23.4% | 23.5% | 24.7% |
| 1987 | 10.7% | 14.3% | 17.8% | 20.4% | 22.8% | 24.5% | 25.9% | 30.1% |
| 1988 | 10.2% | 14.7% | 18.2% | 20.8% | 23.1% | 24.4% | 25.5% | 28.6% |
| 1989 | 9.6% | 14.3% | 18.1% | 20.8% | 23.0% | 24.2% | 25.3% | 27.9% |
| 1990 | 10.7% | 15.0% | 18.2% | 20.8% | 23.0% | 24.1% | 25.2% | 27.7% |
| 1991 | 10.2% | 14.5% | 17.8% | 20.5% | 22.9% | 24.2% | 25.5% | 28.9% |
| 1992 | 10.0% | 13.9% | 17.7% | 20.3% | 22.7% | 24.1% | 25.6% | 29.6% |
| 1993 | 10.0% | 13.8% | 17.6% | 20.3% | 22.7% | 24.4% | 26.4% | 33.2% |
| 1994 | 8.2% | 13.5% | 17.8% | 20.7% | 23.1% | 24.8% | 26.7% | 34.4% |
| 1995 | 7.6% | 13.8% | 17.8% | 20.7% | 23.3% | 25.2% | 27.2% | 34.9% |
| 1996 | 6.8% | 13.7% | 17.8% | 20.7% | 23.2% | 25.1% | 27.4% | 34.8% |
| 1997 | 7.0% | 14.0% | 18.1% | 20.7% | 23.5% | 25.2% | 27.6% | 33.8% |
| 1998 | 6.9% | 13.4% | 17.4% | 20.6% | 23.4% | 25.2% | 27.4% | 32.4% |
| 1999 | 7.2% | 13.7% | 17.5% | 20.7% | 23.7% | 25.5% | 28.0% | 32.6% |
| 2000 | 6.6% | 13.6% | 17.3% | 20.7% | 23.7% | 25.5% | 28.0% | 32.3% |
| 2001 | 6.1% | 11.8% | 15.7% | 19.3% | 22.5% | 24.6% | 26.7% | 32.0% |
| 2002 | 5.6% | 11.0% | 15.1% | 18.5% | 21.8% | 23.8% | 26.1% | 31.9% |
| 2003 | 5.7% | 10.1% | 14.3% | 17.8% | 20.8% | 22.7% | 25.1% | 30.3% |
| 2004 | 5.3% | 10.3% | 14.6% | 18.0% | 20.9% | 22.9% | 25.4% | 30.0% |
| 2005 | 5.5% | 10.5% | 14.8% | 18.3% | 21.0% | 23.0% | 25.9% | 30.2% |
| 2006 | 5.9% | 10.6% | 14.9% | 18.3% | 21.2% | 23.1% | 25.9% | 29.8% |
| 2007 | 5.3% | 11.0% | 14.8% | 18.1% | 20.9% | 22.7% | 25.4% | 28.2% |
| 2008 | 0.9% | 7.8% | 12.2% | 16.0% | 19.3% | 21.8% | 24.6% | 28.1% |
| 2009 | -0.3% | 7.2% | 11.8% | 15.5% | 18.9% | 21.2% | 24.2% | 28.7% |
| 2010 | 0.1% | 7.8% | 12.1% | 16.0% | 19.4% | 21.7% | 24.8% | 29.2% |
| 2011 | 0.6% | 7.7% | 12.0% | 15.7% | 18.9% | 21.2% | 24.3% | 29.0% |
| 2012 | 0.9% | 7.7% | 12.2% | 15.9% | 19.2% | 21.6% | 24.8% | 28.5% |
| 2013 | 2.3% | 9.1% | 13.7% | 17.4% | 20.9% | 23.2% | 26.3% | 33.6% |
| 2014 | 1.9% | 9.1% | 14.0% | 17.8% | 21.2% | 23.4% | 26.7% | 33.6% |
Source: Congressional Budget Office (2018)
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