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Tax Policy Blog

Stay informed with quick and accessible analysis of today's top tax policy topics. Read Tax Foundation's Tax Policy Blog for insight from our experts on tax policies across the U.S. and abroad.

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Blog Articles

6173 Results
Cory Booker Estate Tax, Cory Booker step-up in basis, Cory Booker Tax, Expanding the estate tax, Eliminating step-up in basis

Booker’s Plan to Eliminate Step-up in Basis and Expand the Estate Tax

Removing step-up in basis would encourage taxpayers to realize capital gains and it would plug a hole in the current income tax, while increasing federal revenue. Combined, however, with the estate tax, this would result in a significant tax burden on certain saving by requiring both the appreciation in and total value of transferred property to be taxed at death

2 min read
tax treatment of capital gains, capital gains deferral, capital gains deferrals, Joe Biden's capital gains tax proposal, Biden capital gains tax proposal, Biden's tax proposal, realizations fall when capital gains tax rates rise

JCT Report Shows Capital Gains are Sensitive to Taxation

JCT’s report on capital gains elasticities reminds us that capital gains realizations, at least under a tax system that allows deferral, are sensitive to tax rates. Moving to mark-to-market taxation of all capital gains would remove this sensitivity by taxing capital gains annually.

4 min read
OECD harmful tax practices, FHTP, OECD BEPS, OECD Base Erosion and Profit Shifting

OECD Tackling Harmful Tax Practices

Countries around the world often design their tax policies to become attractive targets for foreign investment. These policies can be anything from a system with special preferences for certain industries to a well-designed tax system based on principles of sound tax policy. Systems that are rife with special preferences and complexities can create distortions in local jurisdictions and across the global economy.

3 min read
Chicago budget shortfall, Chicago Budget deficit, Chicago higher taxes in Chicago

No Good Options as Chicago Seeks Revenue

Facing an $838 million budget shortfall, a looming pension crisis, and an aggressive spending wish list, some Chicago policymakers and activists are expressing interest in a laundry list of new and higher taxes that could, collectively, raise as much as an additional $4.5 billion a year.

6 min read
Senator Wyden capital gains tax, unrealized capital gains tax, mark-to-market capital gains tax proposal

Evaluating Senator Wyden’s “Mark-to-Market” Capital Gains Tax

Wyden’s “mark-to-market” proposal strives to subject capital gains to the same treatment as ordinary income. While the plan resolves the “lock in effect” issue and would make the tax code more progressive, it would increase the tax burden on savers and increase tax code complexity.

2 min read
full expensing, 100% bonus depreciation,

New Evidence on the Benefits of Full Expensing

Additional evidence on the economic benefits of full expensing of investment was recently published in the American Economic Journal: Economic Policy.

4 min read