It Pays to Keep It Simple
Simplicity in the tax code means taxes should be easy for taxpayers to pay and easy for governments to administer and collect.
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County Data Shows Repealing SALT Cap Would Benefit High-Income Earners
Any move to repeal the cap or enhance the deduction would disproportionately benefit higher earners, making the tax code more regressive.
5 min read
Summary of the Tax Credits Claimed on the Form 1040, Tax Year 2020
In tax year 2020, taxpayers claimed more than 159 million tax credits on their individual income tax returns worth a total of more than $277 billion. That was an increase of $35.3 billion from tax year 2019, largely due to an influx of pandemic relief administered through the tax code in 2020.
6 min read
Details and Analysis of the American Families and Jobs Act
Details and analysis of the latest House GOP tax plan, the American Families and Jobs Act. Learn more about the House Republican tax plan.
7 min read
“Monetizing” Clean Energy Tax Credits Creates a Sham Market for Bad Policy
Explore IRS clean energy tax credits, including Direct Pay, the IRA and CHIPS Act tax provisions, and Section 1603 grant program. See more.
7 min read
A Tax Reform Plan for Growth and Opportunity: Details & Analysis
This tax reform plan would boost long-run GDP by 2.5%, grow wages by 1.4%, and add 1.3M jobs, all while collecting a similar amount of tax revenue as the current code and reducing the long-run debt burden.
39 min read
Sources of Personal Income, Tax Year 2020
Reviewing reported income helps to understand the composition of the federal government’s revenue base and how Americans earn their taxable income. The individual income tax, the federal government’s largest source of revenue, is largely a tax on labor.
10 min read
Blog
Short FormUnderstanding the House GOP Tax Plan
What does the tax reform package do well? What does it do poorly? How would it affect me?
4 min read
R&D Amortization Hurts Economic Growth, Growth Industries, and Small Businesses
The current tax treatment of R&D expenses is irrational, complicated, and counterproductive. Fortunately, fixing this problem is a bipartisan issue.
4 min read
Ranking Individual Income Taxes on the 2023 State Business Tax Climate Index
Individual income tax rates can influence location decision-making, especially in an era of enhanced mobility, where it is easier for individuals to move without jeopardizing their current job, or without limiting the scope of their search for a new one.
5 min read
Insights into the Tax Systems of Scandinavian Countries
Scandinavian countries are well known for their broad social safety net and their public funding of services such as universal health care, higher education, parental leave, and child and elderly care. So how do Scandinavian countries raise their tax revenues?
7 min read
Is Michigan’s Tax Cut Temporary or Permanent?
Michiganders will pay a lower individual income tax rate next year thanks to high general fund revenues, but these savings may be short-lived following an opinion released by the state’s attorney general.
7 min read
IRS Strategic Operating Plan Shows Promise, but Concerns Remain
While the IRS hopes to increase revenue collection and minimize additional burdens on taxpayers, uncertainty remains regarding its ability to deliver, particularly on the latter. Furthermore, some concerns about the original funding package are already surfacing, specifically around insufficient funding for taxpayer services.
6 min read
Global Excise Tax Application and Trends
When designed well, excise taxes discourage the consumption of products that create external harm and generate revenue for funding services that ameliorate social costs. The effectiveness of excise tax policy depends on the appropriate selection of the tax base and tax rate, as well as the efficient use of revenues.
83 min read
America’s Progressive Tax and Transfer System: Federal, State, and Local Tax and Transfer Distributions
The overall U.S. tax and transfer system is overwhelmingly progressive, and understanding the extent—and source—of that progressivity is essential for lawmakers considering the trade-offs associated with each tax policy decision.
23 min read
Details and Analysis of President Biden’s Fiscal Year 2024 Budget Proposal
According to our analysis, President Biden’s budget would reduce long-run economic output by about 1.3 percent and eliminate 335,000 FTE jobs. See what tax policies the president is proposing.
17 min read
Facts & Figures 2023: How Does Your State Compare?
Facts & Figures serves as a one-stop state tax data resource that compares all 50 states on over 40 measures of tax rates, collections, burdens, and more.
2 min read
Oklahoma Lawmakers’ Tax Reform Plan Would Put State in Top 10
The changes put forth in a new package of bills would represent significant pro-growth change for Oklahoma that would set the state up for success in an increasingly competitive tax landscape.
7 min read
Biden’s New Tax Proposals Are Complicated and Rife with Double Taxation
Tax reform should be about increasing fairness. And the way to get there is by reducing complexity and double taxation, not by doubling down on them.
6 min read
Biden’s FY 2024 Budget Would Result in More Than $4.5 Trillion in Gross Tax Increases
President Biden’s new budget proposal outlines several major tax increases targeted at businesses and high-income individuals that would bring U.S. income tax rates far out of step with international norms.
7 min read