July 27, 2009

If we consider financial service fees as a ''tax'' on the earning power of our money, millions of savers are now paying at a rate of 90 percent. Some are paying more. This means the financial services industry can take 90 percent, or more, of every dime earned in interest and dividends.The people who pay this tax are not the richest Americans.

They are everyday people with everyday incomes — teachers, state and local employees, or any worker with an expensive 401(k) or 403(b) plan.It wasn't always this way. Back in 1985, for instance, a 50/50 portfolio of S&P 500 stocks and five-year Treasury obligations provided a yield of 7.19 percent. Back then, stocks were yielding a healthy 4.25 percent, while five-year Treasuries were yielding 10.12 percent.