Every year around Tax Tim the Think Tank takes a look at taxes.

This year’s guest is Bob Lord, who is a tax attorney and a Fellow with the Institute of Policy Studies.

Among other things, Bob observes that the richest .01 percent of Americans, about 33,000 lucky souls, now pay just one-sixth of what they used to pay in tax, when measured as a percentage of their total wealth and that billionaire tax payments, as a percentage of their wealth, have dropped by an astounding 79 percent since 1980.

How did this happen?

And how do they do it?

To understand this, we delve into the difference between “nominal” tax rates (which are moderately progressive) and the actual rates that people actually pay.  And the various devices buried deep into the tax code that few understand.

All things Taxes in this week’s Think Tank.

The Think Tank airs from 6-7pm Saturdays and Sundays from 9-10pm on KTAR 92.3 FM. After broadcast, podcasts are available at ktar.com.   Older shows are archived at www.mikeoneil.org which can also be used to reach the host via Facebook, Twitter, or email.

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