IRS News Release  
September 12, 1996

IRS Issues Summer 1996
Statistics of Income Bulletin

WASHINGTON - The average tax rate for individuals for 1993 was 14.1 percent, 2.9 percent more than 1992, according to the Summer 1996 issue of the Internal Revenue Service quarterly publication, the Statistics of Income Bulletin. This was the highest average tax rate (tax divided by adjusted gross income or AGI) since 1986, and was due entirely to taxpayers with AGI of $100,000 or more. The average rate for all other individuals declined. An analysis of income tax returns shows that the new higher tax rates enacted in 1993 for higher income individuals were largely responsible for the increased average tax rate.

There were 1.1 million individual income tax returns in the top one percentile based on AGI for 1993. They accounted for almost 14 percent of total AGI and 29 percent of total individual income tax. To fall into the top one percent for 1993, taxpayers had to have an AGI of at least $185,715.

For 1993, pre-tax profits reported on corporation income tax returns increased 24 percent over 1992 to $498.2 billion, with 79 percent of the total attributable to "giant" companies (with assets of $250 million or more). The corporation income tax grew from $101.5 billion to $119.9 billion, as a result.

During Fiscal Year 1993 about 1.7 million individuals filed 2.5 million "delinquent" income tax returns (returns filed at least 360 days late). Fourteen percent of the "repeaters" filed three or more returns. Over half of all "repeaters" owed more than $1,000 in tax.

There were 42,400 tax-exempt private foundations for 1992 reporting revenue totaling $23.6 billion. Returns filed by other charities numbered 158,000. Their revenue totaled $523.8 billion.

The Statistics of Income Bulletin is available from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, P.O. Box 37194, Pittsburgh, PA 15250-7954. The annual subscription rate is $30 ($37.50 foreign). For other statistical information write the Director, Statistics of Income (SOI) Division CP:R:S:S:P, Internal Revenue Service, P.O. Box 2608, Washington, DC 20013-2608; dial the SOI electronic bulletin board at (202) 874-9574; check the World Wide Web at http://www.irs.gov; or telephone the SOI statistical information services office at (202) 874-0410 (e-mail [email protected]; FAX (202) 874-0964).

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