Regular readers know most posts here focus on Christiansburg and its administration -- taxes, budgets, planning, zoning, and just generally being involved. Yet, occasionally, the connections between our town and the region, between our town and the state, or even national interdependencies are touched on.
Generally avoiding anything related to the national elections other than encouraging citizens to register and go vote, there is one report worth repeating here.
In the Sunday "Parade" magazine's Intelligence Report, a chart compared and contrasted the differences between both presidential candidate's proposed tax platforms. "How Much Would You Pay In Taxes" was an eye-opener.
If the average annual income for Christiansburg families is about $47,000, then with one candidate voters might realize a reduction of $1,118 in taxes and with another candidate would save $325. Since the average is the median (half are below this amount, the other have are above it), it seems most households in Christiansburg might have more in their wallet one way than the other.
For Christiansburg residents earning between $161,000 to $226,999, one candidate would save you $2,796 and the other would reduce your taxes $4,437 a year. How many town or county residents living above the local average would this affect?
Are there 5% of Montgomery County citizens who are among the nation's top 5% of all earners ($227,000 to more than $2.87 million a year)? One candidate's plan would increase taxes for those earning $227,000 to $603,400 by mere $121 a year, while the other candidate would reduce those taxes by $8,159 -- much more than what would benefit "median" households locally.
For those making over $603,400, one candidate would increase taxes nearly 16% adding another $93,709 in taxes and the other would reduce those taxes by $48,862 -- a savings nearly the same as the median income of Christiansburg residents. How many of your neighbors would fall into this category?
While all the issues facing our country are broader than just personal tax liabilities and individual wallets, it will be interesting to see if people "vote with their pocketbooks." Will citizens earning over $161,000 vote along the same lines as people who earn 10 times more than them, or those earning 10 times less than them? After all, just 5% of the voters can't shift the results of an election alone, can they?