“I pay school tax and our kinner don’t even go to public school,” is a common gripe among the
Amish. “We pay two school taxes, one for public and one for our own one-room
schoolhouses and the teachers’ pay.” If
you ever want to hear an Amish person talk fast, just ask about taxes. You’ll
see how spirited they can get.
The notion that Amish don’t pay taxes is a pet peeve
among them. They never want to be accused of mooching off of anyone, paying
their fair share. They pay all taxes except social security, and here’s the
rub. Our government agreed to them not paying social security because they have
a good track record of taking care of their elderly. It’s on religious grounds,
but I wonder why other Christians can’t do the same.
I went to a funeral a month ago for a dear friend who
suffered a stroke at 72 and for the next ten years his wife refused to put him
in a nursing home, taking care of him herself, along with help from family.
This is a bunny trail away from what the Amish pay in taxes, but there are more
and more Americans taking care of their elderly. Maybe there needs to be a
revision in what we pay into social security if we sign a paper stating we’ll
take care of our own.
When I lived in Ellington, NY, people would complain
that the Amish don’t pay taxes but get all the benefits: paved roads, bridges,
telephone lines to their phone shanties. I believed this at first, but then I
asked Amish friends and oh boy do they get fired up. The Amish pay taxes for
all infrastructure needs…cough, couch…electric lines they don’t use…but they
don’t have to pay for social security.
On this blog I sometimes mention Noah, a young man in
this 30’s now who helped remodel our house and practically lived with us for
two months. Well, he’s trying to move back to Smicksburg because his land taxes
went up in New York. Yes, the Amish can
lose their farms and homes like anyone else if taxes aren't paid.
So, if anyone accuses “those Amish” people of having
it so easy, being able to live off the grid because of no taxes, well, you can
defend them. I think people are so spitting mad about how much we pay for taxes
in America they want to blame someone, and unfortunately, it’s sometimes the Amish.
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| Fannie's quilt shop in Smicksburg helps make ends meet. Jah, they have a tax bills to pay. |
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| Amish children walking home from the one-room schoolhouse their parents pay for along with the teacher's salary. |
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| Amish men enjoying the roads free from pot holes, at least for a while, with the help of their tax money. |
