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.

JCT Report Shows How Corporate Tax Breaks Have Expanded, Analysis of JCT Corporate Tax Expenditures
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JCT Report Shows How Corporate Tax Breaks Have Expanded

Lawmakers should prioritize creating a tax system that supports investment more broadly rather than subsidizing specific industries and allowing broad, neutral pro-investment provisions to expire.

3 min read
Nebraska Property Tax Relief Proposal by Governor Jim Pillen
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Evaluating Nebraska Governor’s Plan for Property Tax Relief

Nebraskans need property tax relief and there are sound ways to provide it. However, increasing the sales tax rate to the highest in the country and dramatically increasing cigarette excises is not sound tax policy. 

5 min read
Blog

D.C. Tax Revision Commission Recommends Major Tax Changes

While some recommendations follow the principles of sound tax policy and may improve the District’s tax climate, some proposals make the tax code more complex and less neutral, potentially disincentivizing investment and business activity.

6 min read
Inflation Reduction Act energy tax increases methane emissions superfund tax and coal taxes methane emissions and methane fee natural gas
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Methane Fee to Take Effect in 2024: A Mini Carbon Price

At the beginning of 2024, a fee on certain methane emissions took effect. While insignificant on its own, it is the first U.S. federal-level effort to price greenhouse gas emissions to combat climate change.

3 min read
Details and analysis of the Virginia Governor Youngkin Tax Plan. See more on Glenn Youngkin tax plan.
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Governor Youngkin Unveils a New Tax Plan for Virginia

Virginia Governor Youngkin unveiled the contours of a tax reform plan incorporated into his forthcoming budget, which includes three major structural elements: a reduction in the individual income tax rate, a 0.9 percentage point increase in the sales tax rate, and the broadening of the sales tax base to include some “new economy” digital services.

6 min read