Tax Policy Blog

Senate Republican Coronavirus Package Is Undermined by Complexity & Impermanence

What does the Senate Republican coronavirus package do? Are there better ways of providing short-run relief without making the tax code more complicated?

Biden’s Plan to Address Offshoring Comes with Contradictions

If the goal of the Biden campaign is to bring new investment and jobs to the U.S., it is doubtful that these new tax rules will contribute to that goal.

Russia Proposes Revision of Tax Treaties with the Netherlands, Cyprus, Malta, and Luxembourg

Proposals to Lure Foreigners to Greece Highlight Need to Reform Property Taxes

A more efficient property tax system in Greece is a better objective than just focusing on incentives for foreigners to change their tax residence.

Biden’s Proposal Would Shift the Distribution of Retirement Tax Benefits

One of Biden’s tax proposals that has gotten little attention is a change that would shift the benefits of tax deferral in traditional retirement accounts toward lower- and middle-income earners. The plan would reduce the tax benefit for those earning above $80,250 but under $400,000, violating Biden’s tax pledge to not raise taxes on earners below the $400,000 threshold.

President Trump Outlines Second Term Tax Ideas

Broad themes of the president’s agenda include providing tax relief to individuals and tax credits to businesses that engage in desired activities, while the status of expiring TCJA provisions and tariffs seems uncertain.

Reviewing Joe Biden’s Tax Vision

Biden’s tax vision is twofold: higher taxes on high-income earners and businesses paired with more generous provisions for specific activities and households.

How the CARES Act Fixed a Tax Bias Against Green Investment

One under-discussed part of the CARES Act, passed in March to provide economic relief during the COVID-19 epidemic, is a correction to a drafting error in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, often known as the “retail glitch.”

New Research on the Impact of Energy Taxes and the EU’s Cap-and-Trade System

New Accelerated Depreciation Policies to Spur Investment in Australia, Austria, Germany, and New Zealand

In recent months, several countries have introduced accelerated depreciation as a measure to incentivize private investment, including Australia, Austria, Germany, and New Zealand. There are various ways of how this policy has been implemented in the respective countries, largely depending on the existing standard depreciation schedules.

Contrary to Popular Belief, Value-Added Taxes Found to Be Slightly Progressive

Value-added taxes (VAT) are traditionally considered regressive, meaning they place a disproportionate burden on low-income taxpayers. However, a recent OECD study used household expenditures micro-data from 27 OECD countries to reassess this conclusion.

Nebraska’s Property Tax Compromise Provides Temporary Relief, but Structural Reform Is Still Needed

Tax credits like the ones approved in the Nebraska bill may help legislators buy some time to work toward a more permanent solution, but they are not, in and of themselves, an effective means of providing lasting relief or generating long-term economic growth.

Economic Recovery and Deductions for Worker Training

Tax treatment can affect investment decisions. Extending expensing treatment (full and immediate deductions) to all forms of capital investment, human and physical, would help facilitate sustainable long-run economic growth.

Nevada Hoping to Extract Revenue with Mining Tax Increase Amendment

Nevada is not alone in its need to find revenue, but it should take care not to embrace bad tax policy in the process. Significant rate increases, a shift in the tax base, and provisions which make it easier to hike taxes than to cut them would heavily burden the mining industry in the state.

Where Does Kamala Harris Stand on Tax Policy?

What tax policy ideas did Harris propose along the campaign trail, and how do they differ from Biden’s plan?

Estimating Neutral Cost Recovery’s Impact on Affordable Housing

Housing affordability was a major issue even before the COVID-19 crisis, but the current economic situation has made it more salient. Immediate support for people struggling makes sense now, but lawmakers should also consider long-term solutions to the problem of high rents, namely by expanding the supply of housing.

Higher Taxes Might Not Be the Solution for Canada and its Provinces

First, the introduction of the wealth tax would significantly impact international capital flows and cause large economic dislocations in the short term. Second, provinces that are looking at raising their corporate tax rates might hinder capital attraction, growth, and economic recovery.

Vermont May Be the Next State to Legalize Recreational Marijuana Sales

According to news reports, the Vermont legislature is ready to advance S54 this month or next, to legalize cultivation and sales of marijuana in the state beginning in 2022.

Evidence Suggests that Tax Rates Influence Migration Decisions

Individuals respond to taxes by changing their behavior. Hence, when there are tax differences between countries, some might respond by moving to a lower-tax area. For higher-income individuals, the benefits of moving as a result of higher taxes are greater because they have more income or wealth at stake.

Who will Ultimately Pay the Digital Services Tax in the UK? Amazon Passes the Cost Along to Sellers

When developing tax policy, lawmakers often ignore the incidence of a tax, or who actually pays the tax. Many times, this is different from who is legally required to pay the tax. Just because a 2 percent revenue tax applies to large digital companies does not mean that the companies will bear the entire cost of the tax.