“Obama also boasted that the payroll tax cut passed in December ‘put an extra $1,000 in the pockets of almost every single American.’ The president is giving an average for all taxpayers, not a figure for ‘almost every single American.’ The value of the tax cut depends on how much money each American makes. And the working poor ended up paying more as a result of the deal that included the payroll tax cut.
“The deal cut the Social Security payroll tax rate from 6.2 percent to 4.2 percent for 2011. So, if you earn more, you save more. The tax cut will put an extra $2,136 in the pockets of those earning $106,800 a year. Any amount earned above that isn’t subject to the Social Security tax. Kiplinger published a handy chart and tax calculator on what the cut would mean for various income levels. Those making $50,000 a year would get nearly $1,000 even ($999.60) for the year in their pockets, and those earning $30,000 would take home an extra $600.
“But the payroll tax cut wasn’t a good deal for the working poor – those earning less than $20,000. The Tax Policy Center explained that the payroll tax deal meant the end of 2009’s and 2010’s Making Work Pay credit, which was a more beneficial for these low-wage earners. The Making Work Pay credit gave up to $400 to individuals earning between $6,452 and $75,000, and gave up to $800 to couples earning between $12,903 and $150,000. But, the TPC’s Roberton Williams explained in a Dec. 8, 2010, blog post, ‘you won’t get $400 from the payroll tax cut until your earnings reach $20,000; earnings have to be twice that high to yield the $800 that MWP gave to couples. So single taxpayers who earn less than $20,000 and married couples earning less than $40,000 will pay more in taxes under the payroll tax cut than under MWP.’
‘The TPC also produced a chart showing the winners and losers of the tax cut trade-off. About 51 million Americans were better off with the Making Work Pay credit — they’ll pocket $210 less on average for the year. But there are nearly 73 million other Americans who fare much better under Obama’s more recent tax deal.”
http://www.factcheck.org/2011/04/factchecking-obamas-budget-speech/