Scott Hodge is President Emeritus & Senior Policy Advisor at the Tax Foundation, which he led as President for over two decades, between 2000 and 2022. Scott Hodge is recognized as one of Washington’s leading experts on tax policy, the federal budget, and government spending. After taking over the Tax Foundation, he grew the organization from a modest, six-person group with a storied brand into a national powerhouse with a staff of over 30, informing smarter tax policy at the federal, state, and global levels.
Scott led the development of the Tax Foundation’s most successful programs, the Taxes and Growth Dynamic Tax Modeling project and the State Business Tax Climate Index, two projects that have changed the terms of the tax debate, encouraged competition towards pro-growth tax policies, and demonstrated to policymakers and taxpayers alike the impact of the tax code on our daily lives. Combined with his experience in tax policy of more than 35 years, Scott was one of the driving forces of tax reform that culminated in the historic 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). Congress and the White House turned to Scott and the Tax Foundation for guidance in crafting the once-in-a-generation legislation.
The TCJA was just the latest in a string of developments in tax policy that Scott helped foster. During the 1990s, he helped design the major tax components of the Contract with America that became the eventual centerpieces of the 1997 tax bill and the Bush tax cuts in 2001 and 2003.
Scott has written and edited three books on the federal budget and streamlining the government and has authored hundreds of studies on tax policy and government spending. He has also written dozens of editorials and opinion pieces for publications such as The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, USA TODAY, the New York Post and The Washington Times. And he has conducted more than 1,000 radio and television interviews—including with NBC Nightly News, CBS Evening News, CNN, Fox, Hardball with Chris Matthews, and C-SPAN.
Before joining the Tax Foundation, Scott was Director of Tax and Budget Policy at Citizens for a Sound Economy. He also spent ten years at The Heritage Foundation as a fellow analyzing budget and tax policy. He holds a degree in political science from the University of Illinois at Chicago.
A new Treasury study provides data showing that the rich not only pay more than the middle class, they pay more than one-third of their annual income in federal taxes and more than 45 percent when state and local taxes are included.
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CBO data shows that the federal fiscal system—both taxes and direct federal benefits—is getting more progressive and redistributive in 2024.
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If lawmakers are convinced that new revenues must be part of any long-term effort to solve the budget crisis or offset the cost of extending the TCJA, they must choose the least harmful ways of raising new revenues or else risk undermining their efforts by slowing economic growth.
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Americans will spend more than 7.9 billion hours complying with IRS tax filing and reporting requirements in 2024. This is equal to 3.8 million full-time workers doing nothing but tax return paperwork—roughly equal to the population of Los Angeles.
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For over a century, lawmakers have exempted politically favored organizations and industries from the tax code. As a result, the tax-exempt nonprofit economy now comprises 15 percent of GDP, roughly equal to the fifth-largest economy in the world.
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All taxes tell a story, and today we’ll explore how taxes influenced Bob Dylan’s decision to sell his music catalog, how the “chicken tax” reshaped the auto industry, and how the historic “tax on air and light” had profound effects on architecture and living conditions.
Credit unions’ privileged status as tax-exempt nonprofit organizations may have filled a market need during the Great Depression, but 90 years later, there is no longer a justification to subsidize these institutions.
In the end, the best way for the EU to support Ukraine’s post-war recovery is to guarantee its tax sovereignty, not just its territorial sovereignty.
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What historical lessons of wartime finance can Ukrainian and EU policymakers learn to put Ukraine’s economy on a path to success during, and especially after, the war?
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The latest tax gap report from the IRS has generated much media attention—and much misunderstanding.
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Can an organization rightfully be called a “nonprofit” if it almost always makes money? And what if most of that organization’s income comes from “business income,” should it legitimately be considered a “charity”?
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What can Former President Trump’s previous tariff efforts—specifically the safeguards he authorized on imported washing machines in 2018—tell us about his most recent proposal for a 10 percent tariff on all imports?
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The early evidence indicates that making a “good return greater” through Opportunity Zone tax incentives is an ineffective and poorly targeted way to raise the living standards of low-income residents.
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Moving from one athletic conference to another can mean millions in additional revenue sharing from lucrative broadcasting contracts and other revenue streams, all tax-free.
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Explore IRS clean energy tax credits, including Direct Pay, the IRA and CHIPS Act tax provisions, and Section 1603 grant program. See more.
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Lawmakers should avoid delivering social and economic benefits through the tax code whenever possible and work to simplify or repeal the tax expenditures already in the tax code.
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Over the long run, tax policies that grow after-tax incomes and the economy do more to boost charitable giving than policies that try to incentivize people to be charitable.
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New CBO data shows that the current U.S. fiscal system—both taxes and direct federal benefits—is very progressive and very redistributive.
7 min read
While supporters of the federal estate tax may be correct that only a fraction of estate tax returns eventually pays the estate tax, IRS data shows that it disproportionately impacts estates tied to successful privately owned businesses. Thus, it acts as a second or third layer of federal tax on these successful businesses over the owners’ lifetime.
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If ever there was a paycheck protection program, defending people from bracket creep may be the most important one ever designed.
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