Skip to content
William McBride or Will McBride Tax Foundation
Expert

William McBride

Chief Economist & Stephen J. Entin Fellow in Economics

Dr. William McBride is the Chief Economist & Stephen J. Entin Fellow in Economics at the Tax Foundation, where he oversees major research projects primarily related to reforming the federal tax code, advancing sound tax policy, and improving the federal government’s fiscal outlook.

Dr. McBride has more than ten years of experience analyzing a variety of economic and policy issues. At the Tax Foundation he has served as the Vice President of Federal Tax Policy, leading our efforts to research, model, and reform the U.S. tax code, and as Chief Economist, researching the economics of taxation and guiding the development of the Tax Foundation dynamic scoring model. From 2015 to 2020 he was a manager in the National Economic and Statistics (NES) group at PwC where he worked on a wide array of projects including economic impact analyses, industry surveys, U.S. federal and state tax revenue estimates, and issues related to tax reform at the state, federal, and international levels.

Dr. McBride holds a PhD in economics from George Mason University, where he specialized in macroeconomics and agent-based modeling. His research has been cited by policymakers, quoted by major media outlets, including The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, and published in scholarly journals, such as the National Tax Journal, Public Budgeting & Finance, and Tax Notes.

Latest Work

2025 Tax Reform TCJA Offsets Budget Offsets

Picking the Right Budgetary Offsets Key to Tax Reform Success

In a perilous economic and fiscal environment, with instability created by Trump’s trade war and publicly held debt on track to surpass the highest levels ever recorded within five years, a lot rides on how Republicans navigate tax and spending reforms in reconciliation.

6 min read
Budget Reconciliation: Tracking the 2025 Trump Tax Cuts GOP Tax Bill and Reform

Budget Reconciliation: Tracking the 2025 Trump Tax Cuts

President Trump has called for permanent extension of the 2017 tax cuts, additional policies including no taxes on tips, overtime pay, and Social Security benefits for retirees, and has also promised higher taxes on US imports through a series of new tariffs.

7 min read
Reducing spending in the tax code tax expenditures could help pay or raise trillions for 2025 tax reform

Cleaning Up the Tax Code Could Raise Trillions for Tax Reform

As Republicans look for ways to offset the budgetary cost of extending the expiring provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) and potentially enacting other tax cuts, the latest estimates indicate several trillion dollars could be raised by reducing tax credits and other preferences in the tax code.

5 min read
Trump Tax Cuts, Tariffs, and Reconciliation After the 2024 Election

Questions About Tax Cuts, Tariffs, and Reconciliation After the Election

Fiscal pressures are likely to weigh heavily on lawmakers as they craft a tax reform package. That increased pressure could result in well-designed tax reform that prioritizes economic growth, simplicity, and stability, or it could encourage budget gimmicks and economically harmful offsets. Lawmakers should avoid the latter.

8 min read
Kamala Harris Tax Plan 2024 Details Analysis

Kamala Harris Tax Plan Ideas: Details and Analysis

On tax policy, Harris carries forward much of President Biden’s FY 2025 budget, including higher taxes aimed at businesses and high earners. She would also further expand the child tax credit (CTC) and various other tax credits and incentives while exempting tips from income tax.  

17 min read
US deficits, spending, and taxes CBO Budget and Economic Outlook 2024

Major Takeaways from CBO’s Updated Long-Term Outlook

The CBO projects deficits will be higher than historical levels, largely due to growth in mandatory spending programs While some recent legislation has reduced the deficit, the Inflation Reduction Act is proving to be more expensive than originally promised.

5 min read