Title: Income tax in the United States Content: In the United States, people have to pay income taxes to the United States government, most state governments, and many local governments. This means that people have to pay taxes to these governments, based on how much money they earn. ==Introduction== Income taxes are based on what a person earns in one calendar year between January 1 and December 31. When it takes income taxes, the government takes a percentage of a person's income. This percentage is called an income tax rate. In other words, the income tax rate is the part, or portion, of a person's income that the government takes. The United States government, and most states, use progressive tax rates. This means that as a person earns more income, their income tax rate gets higher. In other words, as a person earns more money, they have to pay more taxes. Every year, the government divides incomes into categories. These categories are called tax brackets. Each tax bracket includes a range of incomes the lowest and highest amounts a person could earn to be in that tax bracket. Tax brackets are important because each one is taxed at a different tax rate. In other words, a person in a higher income category has to pay a larger percentage of their income in taxes. The tax rates for each different tax bracket are called marginal tax rates. For example, in 2016, these are the tax brackets and marginal tax rates for single people:  File:Doctor uses a stethoscope to examine a young patient.JPEG|Federal income taxes help pay for poor children to get health care through Medicaid File:Aircraft Rescue Firefighting training.jpg|They help pay soldiers like these Marine Corps firefighters File:FBI Evidence Response Team.jpg|They help pay the FBI and other federal law enforcement agencies File:RPG wounded Iraq veteran exercising Army-dot-mil-2007-02-07-103140.jpg|They pay for benefits for veterans like this Iraq War vet File:ACID WATER, OIL AND ACID CLAY SLUDGE ARE EVIDENT IN THIS FIVE ACRE POND ALSO CLUTTERED WITH JUNKED CARS AND OTHER... - NARA - 555852.jpg|They pay for the EPA to clean up pollution like this ==What state and local income taxes pay for== Every state gets to decide where to spend the income tax it collects (its income tax revenue). Different states use this money for different things, at different times. ===Education and health care=== In 2015, a report looked at what every state spent its income tax revenue on. It found that most of state income tax dollars went to pay for education and health care. Specifically, states spent over half of their income tax revenues on three different things: * Public elementary and secondary schools. Together, state and local governments have to pay 90% of public school costs. These include things like paying teachers, buying books, and paying for all the other things schools need. On average, the states paid one-fourth of their income tax revenues toward public education. * Higher education. States paid about 13% of their income tax revenues to support community colleges, state (public) universities, and vocational schools. * Health care. The states have to help the federal government pay for some health care programs, like Medicaid. These programs help pay for health care for poor people, the elderly, and people with disabilities. States spent about 16% of their income tax revenues on these programs. ===Other things=== The 2015 report found that the states spent the other half of their income tax revenues on many different things. Here are some examples. Transportation makes up about 5% of the states' spending. Income taxes pay for many things, like: * Building roads, highways, and bridges * Making sure roads and bridges are safe, and fixing them * Public transportation * Cleaning snow and ice off the roads during the winter to make them safe to drive on States spend about 4% of their income tax revenue on corrections. These income taxes pay for things like: * Prisons (including paying guards, and paying the costs of keeping prisoners locked up safely) * Treatment programs in prison (for example, for people with addictions) * Educational and job training programs in prison * Programs for children who commit crimes ===Other "public services"=== Many states also use income tax revenues to pay for important "public services," like: * Public safety ** Police departments, and certain fire departments and emergency medical services ** Equipment for these departments, like ambulances ** Salaries for police officers, firefighters, and Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) * Trash collection and street lighting * Free public libraries and public parks * Paying the costs needed to keep the state government working, including paying the salaries of government workers ==Graphs== File:Income tax rate in develop nation.png|Graph showing how the United States's average income tax rates (in green) compare to other countries' File:US Income Tax Rate.png|Graph showing how the tax rate for the highest income bracket has changed from 19132013 File:State and Local Income Tax in the United States.png|Graph showing average state income tax rates (in dark blue), and local tax rates in those states (in light blue) (2014) File:Map of USA highlighting states with no income tax on wages.PNG|States with no personal income taxes