taxes
a rather wealthy community recently voted to substantially raise their property taxes. people were all like what?!?!?!? rich people volunteering to pay higher taxes?!?!?!? that doesn't make any sense!!!! actually, it does. most of their federal and state tax dollars are spent elsewhere. the return on their irs investment is very low. now, if they pay $100 local taxes they lower their federal taxes by $80. so it's a $20 tax hike. but for their $20, the city spends $100 on local things like police, fire, parks, sidewalks, roads, schools, and perhaps most importantly, subsidizing utilities like water, sewer, and refuse. which is $100 they no longer have to pay. a net $80 gain.