Tax Day 2026 Shows Widening Gap Between Working Families and Top 1%
As the 2025 tax filing deadline looms, Americans for Tax Fairness using new data from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, released a state-by-state analysis highlighting the impact of federal policy decisions that are reshaping the tax burden for everyday Missourians.
The findings point to a predictable, yet growing divide where families who work for a living pay a higher percentage of their hard earned income in taxes, while Missouri’s wealthiest families continue to pull further ahead.
Working Families Are Paying More, Getting Less
The analysis shows:
- The bottom 80% of Missourians earn an average of $55,500 per year — nearly $1.9 million less than the average income of the top 1%
- 58,000 Missourians are projected to lose at least part of their SNAP benefits
- 216,000 Missourians could lose access to healthcare
- Families are paying an average of $1,526 more due to rising costs
- A family of four could face over $12,000 more in annual healthcare premiums as key tax credits expire
Tax Changes Hit Working People Hardest
Due to changes from the One Big Bill, ITEP analysis shows that Missouri families can expect to pay the following in 2026:
- The bottom 20% of Missourians will see their annual cost rise by 3.4% per year
- The second 20% of Missourians will face an increase by 2.5% per year
- Top 1% of Missourians see their cost decrease by 0.5%, receiving an average tax cut of over $52,000
8 Billionaires Dominate Missouri
While working families face rising costs, Missouri’s billionaire class has continued to grow their wealth. In Missouri, 8 billionaires collectively hold $49 billion in wealth, an increase of a combined $5.8 billion (13.5%) in just 16 months.
