Tax Freedom Day for 2012 is April 17, 2012
Since 1997, Thomas Howell Ferguson P.A. has recognized and celebrated Tax Freedom Day.

What is Tax Freedom Day?
It is the day when Americans have earned enough money to pay off their tax bill for the year. Taxes at all levels of government – local, state and federal – are included. For the United States as a whole, Tax Freedom Day is on April 17 – the 107th day of 2012. That means from April17 to December 31, you are working for yourself!

When is Tax Freedom Day?
Each year, the Tax Foundation, a tax research organization based out of Washington D.C., calculates Tax Freedom Day. Every dollar that is officially considered income by the government is counted, as is every payment to the government that is officially counted as tax.

How is Tax Freedom Day Calculated?
Tax Freedom Day answers the basic question, "What price is the nation paying for government?" An official government figure for total tax collections is divided by the nation's total income. The answer in 2012 is that taxes amounted to 29.2 percent of our income, and the stretch of 107 days from January 1 to April 17 is 29.2 percent of the year. Income and tax data are then determined for each of the states, yielding 50 state-specific Tax Freedom Days.

When did Tax Freedom Day start?
Dallas Hostetler, a Florida businessman, developed the concept of Tax Freedom Day in 1948. Hostetler trademarked the phrase “Tax Freedom Day” and calculated it each year until 1970. Upon his retirement in 1971, Hostetler transferred the trademark to the Tax Foundation, who has calculated the day for the United States ever since. The Tax Foundation began calculating the specific Tax Freedom Day for each individual state in 1990.

So what was the Tax Freedom Day for Florida in 2012?
With the differences in incomes and state and local taxes, each state has its own Tax Freedom Day. Florida’s Tax Freedom Day was on April 12, the 102nd day of 2012, and ranked 28th out of the 50 states. On April 10, the 100th day of 2012, was Georgia’s Tax Freedom Day (the state ranked 35th). Alabama’s Tax Freedom Day fell on April 6 (the96th day of 2012) and ranked 43rd out of the 50 states.

To learn more about Tax Freedom Day and the Tax Foundation, please visit www.taxfoundation.org/taxfreedomday.

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