Are Taxes in the U.S. High or Low?

From Bruce Bartlett in the NYTimes.com.

Federal taxes are at their lowest level in more than 60 years. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that federal taxes would consume just 14.8 percent of G.D.P. this year. The last year in which revenues were lower was 1950, according to the Office of Management and Budget. …

The G.O.P. says global competitiveness requires the United States to reduce its corporate tax rate. But the United States actually has the lowest corporate tax burden of any of the member nations of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Bartlett goes on to point out that our tax rates are not necessarily lower than those of other countries. It's just that the various allowances and deductions yield the lowest tax receipts than all other OECD countries.