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William McBride Tax Foundation Will McBride
Expert

William McBride

Vice President of Federal Tax Policy & Stephen J. Entin Fellow in Economics

Dr. William McBride is the Vice President of Federal Tax Policy & Stephen J. Entin Fellow in Economics at the Tax Foundation, where he leads our efforts to research, model, and reform the U.S. tax code.

Dr. McBride has more than ten years of experience analyzing a variety of economic and policy issues. Prior to his current role at the Tax Foundation, he served as a manager in the National Economic and Statistics (NES) group at PricewaterhouseCoopers where he worked on numerous projects, including economic impact analyses, industry surveys, U.S. federal and state tax revenue estimates, and general quantitative analyses. He also has experience researching and modeling the economics of taxation and issues related to tax reform at the state, federal, and international levels.

Dr. McBride is no stranger to the Tax Foundation. From 2011 to 2015 he served as chief economist, where he wrote extensively on the economics of taxation, particularly regarding business investment, and guided the development of the Tax Foundation dynamic scoring model.

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 and Tax Notes.

Latest Work

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.  

16 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
2023 Tax Extenders Expiring TCJA Business Tax Provisions and Child Tax Credit Year-End Tax Deal

Tax Extenders in 2023: Three Major Business Provisions and an Expanded Child Credit?

In Congress, both parties have expressed widespread support for improving the treatment of R&D and potentially extending some or all of the major business provisions, while the White House and congressional Democrats have indicated interest in an expanded child tax credit, suggesting potential for a deal.

6 min read
Details and Analysis of Making 2017 Tax Reform Permanent

Details and Analysis of Making the 2017 Tax Reforms Permanent

Lawmakers will have to weigh the economic, revenue, and distributional trade-offs of extending or making permanent the various provisions of the TCJA as they decide how to approach the upcoming expirations. A commitment to growth, opportunity, and fiscal responsibility should guide the approach.

18 min read
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act or TCJA corporate tax was boosted as part of broader economic effects of the 2017 tax law

New Study Finds TCJA Strongly Boosted Corporate Investment

The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) was the largest corporate tax reform in a generation, lowering the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent, temporarily allowing full expensing for short-lived assets (referred to as bonus depreciation), and overhauling the international tax code.

6 min read
Federal deficit grew to $2 trillion in FY 2023 Federal Budget Deficit Data and Projections

Federal Deficit Grew to $2 Trillion in FY 2023

Outside of the pandemic years, this year’s federal deficit is the highest in U.S. history. While tax revenue has increased about 28 percent since the pre-pandemic year 2019, spending has increased about 46 percent. Annual deficits are headed towards $3 trillion over the next few years.

3 min read
Tax Foundation experts analyze ways to rein in the national debt, including US debt and deficits and federal budget and US spending and taxes

How to Rein in the National Debt

Now is the time for lawmakers to focus on long-term fiscal sustainability, as further delay will only make an eventual fiscal reckoning that much harder and more painful. Congressional leaders should follow through on convening a fiscal commission to deal with the long-term budgetary challenges facing the country.

35 min read