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Evaluating U.S. Tax Reform Options & Trade-Offs

The economic crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic poses a triple challenge for tax policy in the United States. Lawmakers are tasked with crafting a policy response that will accelerate the economic recovery, reduce the mounting deficit, and protect the most vulnerable.

To assist lawmakers in navigating the challenge, and to help the American public understand the tax changes being proposed, the Tax Foundation’s Center for Federal Tax Policy modeled how 70 potential changes to the tax code would affect the U.S. economy, distribution of the tax burden, and federal revenue.

In tax policy there is an ever-present trade-off among how much revenue a tax will raise, who bears the burden of a tax, and what impact a tax will have on economic growth. Armed with the information in our new book, Options for Reforming America’s Tax Code 2.0, policymakers can debate the relative merits and trade-offs of each option to improve the tax code in a post-pandemic world.

West Virginia Tax Relief and Reform

Good Policy Leads to More Tax Cuts for West Virginia

Next year, West Virginians will see an income tax cut thanks to revenue triggers in a 2023 law. The Mountain State joins 14 other states that have cut income taxes this year.

4 min read
Current Challenges in Vaping Markets

Current Challenges in Vaping Markets

As much as 98 percent of vaping products sold in the US are illicit. Most states levy an excise tax on vaping products, but these tax systems vary substantially. The result is a messy tax system covering largely illicit products, and no one knows whether taxes are being collected and remitted on most products sold nationwide.

7 min read
Where Does Kamala Harris Stand on Taxes?

Where Does Kamala Harris Stand on Taxes?

While both President Biden and Vice President Harris aim their proposed tax hikes on businesses and high earners, key differences between their tax ideas in the past reveal where Harris may take her tax policy platform in the 2024 campaign.

6 min read
Apollo 11 Moon Space Race Industrial Policy Cost

Space Race and the Cost of Industrial Policy

Project Apollo achieved its clear objective to put a man on the moon. But not all government spending projects are so simple (that is, if you consider flying a spaceship to the moon simple).

3 min read
Trump no tax on tips proposal to exempt tipping from income taxation

Frustrated with Tipping? No Tax on Tips Could Make It Worse

“No tax on tips” might be a catchy idea on the campaign trail. But it could create plenty of headaches, from figuring out tips on previously untipped services to an unexpectedly large loss of federal revenue.

6 min read
Nebraska property tax relief plan including Nebraska property tax reform and Nebraska sales tax proposal

Proposed Nebraska Property Tax Relief Plan Would Make Things Worse

Gov. Pillen is searching for tax burden relief. But his plan, which reportedly involves a two-tiered sales tax and the state’s assumption of most school funding responsibility, would have profound implications that even those most convinced of the urgency of property tax relief may find unworkable and unpalatable.

12 min read
Placing Biden Tax Proposals and Trump Tax Proposals in Historical Context Largest Tax Increase and Largest Tax Hike in History and Largest Tax Decrease and Largest Tax Cut in History

Placing Biden and Trump Tax Proposals in Historical Context

From President Biden calling the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act the “largest tax cut in American history,” to former President Trump claiming that Biden “wants to raise your taxes by four times,” the campaign rhetoric on taxes may be sparking some confusion.

5 min read
Inflation Reduction Act book minimum tax 5G competition china

How Does the IRA’s Book Minimum Tax Affect 5G Competition?

A higher tax burden for private infrastructure investments like wireless spectrum, 5G technology, and machinery and equipment makes an existing problem worse—especially against the backdrop of outright state subsidies in countries like China.

6 min read
global tax agreement global tax deal OECD global minimum tax rules corporate minimum tax rules Secretariat Proposal, OECD Public Consultation Document, Unified Approach under pillar one profit shifting definition tax planning and avoidance foreign direct investment FDI global tax deal impact of global tax agreement OECD international tax proposal

The Latest on the Global Tax Agreement

The agreement represents a major change for tax competition, and many countries will be rethinking their tax policies for multinationals.

8 min read