> it seems to
>me, on two shaky pillars:
>
>One, only (or mostly) people with disposable income
>will feel the pinch and use their middle and upper
>middle class political clout to force change.
>
>A good example of this thinking is found right in
>Yoshie's post:
>
>from -
>
><http://mailman.lbo-talk.org/pipermail/lbo-talk/Week-of-Mon-20060109/028770.html>
>
><quote>
>
>The cost of higher gasoline taxes will be borne by a
>very broad middle-income swathe of the population (the
>poorest, often carless, already use mass
>transportation, and the richest will feel no immediate
>impact).
Here are some numbers on spending on gasoline & motor oil as a percentage of after-tax income for the U.S. by income quintile. The 2003 figures are as reported in the BLS's Consumer Expenditure Survey; the 2005 numbers were estimated by me, based on the growth in average incomes and the level of gasoline prices, and should be considered decent guesses. Clearly from these numbers gas is a big deal for the bottom half of the income distribution. Higher gas taxes, however, could be rebated through an income tax credit for the lower brackets.
Doug
----
PERCENT OF AFTER-TAX INCOME SPENT ON GAS, BY INCOME QUINTILE from the BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey
all Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q5 after-tax income $48,596 8,260 20,543 36,363 58,593 119,091 % on gas
2003 (actual) 2.7% 7.4% 4.8% 3.7% 3.0% 1.7%
late 2005 (DH) 3.3% 8.9% 6.1% 4.5% 3.6% 2.1%