Taxes and the American People: Johns Hopkins Expert Available

TO: Reporters covering the 2012 presidential election and the economy

FROM: Amy Lunday / 443-287-9960 / [email protected]

RE: Taxes and the American people: Johns Hopkins expert available

Newswise — With the economy in a slump and the national unemployment rate hovering at around 9 percent, the American public is hearing a lot about the possibility of raising taxes to solve our problems. Some say that higher income taxes on the richest Americans would pay for the creation of new jobs. Others say that the wealthy upper class will create more jobs if it isn't taxed at a rate comparable to the lower and middle classes. Others propose across-the-board tax increases.

If any these suggestions became reality, how would they affect the American people? Katherine S. Newman, a sociologist at Johns Hopkins University and dean of the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, is the co-author of Taxing the Poor: Doing Damage to the Truly Disadvantaged (University of California Press, February 2011). The book presents a study of the effects taxes have on poverty-related problems like obesity, early mortality, low graduation rates, teen pregnancy and crime. Newman is available to speak to reporters about how sales taxes, income taxes, and regressive tax plans impact American families of all income levels.

Johns Hopkins University news releases can be found on the World Wide Web at http://releases.jhu.edu/Information on automatic E-mail delivery of science and medical news releases is available at the same address.