Tax on Stock Buybacks a Misguided Way to Encourage Investment
Research shows that a tax on stock buybacks would not be the right policy solution to encourage long-term investment or lift wages.
3 min read
Blog Articles
6416 Results
What If We Taxed Churches?
Whether spurred by a belief that government is improperly favoring religious institutions, an antipathy to wealthy celebrity pastors, or a hope that taxing houses of worship could bring down personal tax bills, the taxation of religious bodies is hotly debated online, but barely on the radar of actual elected officials. But is that true? How much, if any, tax revenue is forgone, and what do the policies look like?
7 min read
Tax Reform and Infrastructure Investment: The Two Theories
The Biden administration does have a point about how some components of the infrastructure bill could put downward pressure on inflation in the long term. However, the taxes chosen to pay for those investments would counteract those effects, by reducing investment and productivity growth.
4 min read
Three Issues with Proposed Regulations for Maryland’s Digital Advertising Tax
Earlier this year, Maryland legislators overrode Governor Larry Hogan’s (R) veto of HB732, approving a digital advertising tax, the first of its kind in the country. But legislators punted several crucial questions to the state comptroller, who last week submitted proposed regulations for the digital advertising tax to the state Joint Committee on Administrative, Executive, and Legislative Review.
9 min read
Don’t Copy European Drug Pricing Policies that Reduced R&D and Innovation
Rather than pursuing policies that have demonstrably reduced R&D and innovation elsewhere, and that would disincentivize R&D in the U.S., lawmakers should continue to ensure an ecosystem that encourages risk-taking and R&D.
4 min read
Treasury Minimum Tax Argument Relies on Narrow Interpretation of Current/Proposed Rules
As Congress prepares to rewrite some portion of the current international tax rules, it’s hoped that they are able to achieve a more principled approach and one that is not so subject to obfuscation and misinterpretation.
7 min read
H.R. 3 Would Reduce R&D Spending and Medical Innovation
Lawmakers are considering policy changes within the reconciliation bill that would reduce private R&D within the pharmaceutical industry and reduce the number of new drugs coming to market. Instead of hampering medical progress, policymakers should work to ensure that the tax code remains conducive to R&D spending and the resulting innovation.
5 min read
Reviewing Wyden’s Reconciliation Tax Policy Proposals
Congressional lawmakers are putting together a reconciliation bill to enact much of President Biden’s Build Back Better agenda. Many lawmakers including Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden (D-OR), however, want to make their own mark on the legislation.
5 min read
Wyden’s Financial Services Tax Proposals Would Put “Mark-to-Market” to the Test
Mark-to-market is not simple to implement, as it involves new administrative and compliance challenges for taxpayers. Mark-to-market levies tax on phantom income, requiring some taxpayers to engage in some degree of liquidation, ultimately suppressing incentives to save and invest. The limited tax revenues that could result from these proposals are not worth the risk.
5 min read
Temporary Policies Complicate the Child Tax Credit’s Future
Over the next ten years, the structure of the Child Tax Credit (CTC) is scheduled to change, complicating efforts to extend enhanced CTC benefits or reform the CTC for the long-term. Rather than take an all-or-nothing approach or kick the can down the road by relying on temporary expansions, lawmakers could consider alternative options that better target low-income households, retain work incentives, reduce the impact on federal revenue, and provide taxpayers with a stable, consistent tax code.
8 min read
GILTI of Neglecting Losses
As lawmakers are reviewing international tax rules and determining what to change and update, they should pay attention to the way GILTI interacts with profitable and loss-making companies.
5 min read
Lawmakers’ Tax Rate to Help Pay for Reconciliation is 1,900 Percent
While the excise tax penalty in H.R. 3 is referred to as a 95 percent tax rate, it actually amounts to a 1,900 percent tax rate because of how the proposal defines the tax base. In other words, under the H.R. 3 tax penalty, a drug that sells for $100 would incur a $1,900 tax.
3 min read
The DASH Act Isn’t the Best Way to Solve the Housing Crisis
To tackle problems of homelessness and housing costs, Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) has released a major tax proposal, the Decent Affordable Safe Housing (DASH) For All Act. Several of Wyden’s proposals are also components of the Biden administration’s infrastructure agenda, with a large focus on tax credits designed to either incentivize new housing or directly reduce rent burdens.
5 min read
Don’t Add More Temporary Tax Policies in Budget Reconciliation
Temporary policy creates uncertainty for taxpayers and scheduling more expirations will add to the already-expiring provisions under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017.
3 min read
5 Things to Consider in the Tax Gap Discussion
Increasing tax compliance is a major part of the Biden administration proposal to raise revenue for physical and social infrastructure. Reducing the tax gap—the difference between taxes owed and taxes paid—is a good way to raise revenue, but it doesn’t come without trade-offs, and it’s important to go about it in the right way.
3 min read
Expense Allocation: A Hidden Tax on Domestic Activities and Foreign Profits
While arcane, expense allocation rules are relevant to current debates because they result in a heavier tax burden for U.S. companies under current law than the recently negotiated global minimum tax proposal.
10 min read
Paying for Reconciliation Bill with “Health Care Savings” Threatens Medical Innovation
One of the ways lawmakers intend to pay for $3.5 trillion of new spending in the budget reconciliation package is by creating “health care savings.” The leading proposal to achieve this is H.R. 3, the Elijah Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act, which would change the way that prescription drug prices are negotiated under Medicare Part D.
5 min read
International Tax Proposals and Profit Shifting
There are many ways the U.S.’s international tax rules could be changed, reformed, improved, or worsened. Reflexively jacking up taxes on U.S. multinationals does not necessarily accomplish the goal of reducing or eliminating profit shifting, and it would in fact worsen it.
6 min read
Claiming 97 Percent of Small Businesses Exempt from Biden Taxes Is Misleading
The Biden administration recently cited an analysis from Treasury claiming that “the President’s agenda will protect 97 percent of small business owners from income tax rate increases.” However, the figure is misleading. To assess the economic effect of higher marginal tax rates, it matters how much income or investment will be affected—not how many taxpayers.
3 min read
COVID-19 Tax Relief Added to Increasing Share of Households Paying No Income Tax
According to the Tax Policy Center, an estimated 60 percent of U.S. households paid no income tax in 2020, up from around 43 percent of households in 2019.
4 min read