Which federal bracket this lands in
The $16,100 standard deduction leaves $52,540 of taxable income, which puts the last dollar in the 22% federal bracket. Only $2,140 of it is actually taxed at 22% — the income below $50,400 is taxed at the lower rates first, which is why the effective rate lands well under the bracket number. The 22% band runs to $105,700, so a raise of about $53,160 would be needed before any dollar is taxed at 24%.
Where this sits in Wisconsin's schedule
Wisconsin runs a graduated schedule of 4 bands. After $8,838 of state deductions it taxes $59,802, putting the top dollar in the 5.3% band and producing $2,566 of state tax — 3.74% of gross pay. Its 5.3% band ends at $332,720 of state taxable income, $272,918 above where this salary lands.
Marginal rate is not the rate paid
Federal income tax of $6,271 on $68,640 of gross pay is 9.14% of the salary, against a 22% marginal bracket — a gap of about 12.9 points. The bracket describes the next dollar earned, not the pay already earned, and quoting the bracket as the tax rate overstates the bill by $8,830 at this salary.
What a $1/hr raise is actually worth
A dollar more an hour is $2,080 more a year at 2,080 paid hours. Against a combined marginal rate of about 34.95% -- the 22% federal band, Wisconsin's 5.3%, 1.45% Medicare and 6.2% Social Security -- roughly $1,353 of that reaches the bank, or about $0.65 of the extra dollar.