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.

Idaho’s Tax Hiking Ballot Measure Is Riddled With Mistakes
Idaho Ballot initiative would impose an incredibly high top marginal rate that would fall on many small businesses, not just high-income earners.
7 min read
Navigating the Complex Income Tax System in Italy
High marginal tax rates can act as barriers to upward mobility, discouraging people from advancing in their careers.
5 min read
Lawmakers Revive Prescription Drug Pricing Policies and 1,900% Excise Tax
While the bulk of the proposed tax increases and spending programs remain under debate, Democratic lawmakers have reportedly agreed on prescription drug pricing provisions as a starting point for a revived Build Back Better package.
3 min read
Tax Files Under New Council of EU Presidency: Czechia
As the Czech EU presidency considers a plan to manage various tax-related files, it would be wise to consider principled tax policy that broadens the tax base and reduces the tax wedge on strategic investment.
4 min read
Trends in FDI Before and After the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
Overall, the data shows outbound FDI shifted from low-tax to other jurisdictions, while inbound FDI remained largely unchanged.
3 min read
Oklahoma Becomes First State in Nation to Make Full Expensing Permanent
Gov. Stitt signed into law a pro-growth bill that will set the state apart from its peers. Other states should look to follow Oklahoma’s example and make full expensing permanent to maintain their competitiveness in an increasingly mobile economy.
3 min read
Efforts to Improve Tax Treatment of Saving Gain Traction on Hill
The proposals share a common goal of improving incentives for households to save during a time when inflation is impacting their finances.
3 min read
How FDI Adds Value to Supply Chains
Although the dispersion of our supply chains throughout the world has been scrutinized in recent years, both inbound and outbound foreign direct investment are critical to sustaining supply chain resiliency and reducing economic risks for both firms and investors.
5 min read
Carbon Taxes in the Global Market: Changes on the Way?
As policymakers on both sides of the Atlantic debate the way forward on carbon border adjustment mechanisms, it is important to keep principles of good tax policy in mind.
7 min read
Impact of Elections on French Tax Policy and EU Own Resources
The French election results are paralyzing for French pro-growth tax reforms, pessimistic for EU own resources, and dire for overall economic certainty.
5 min read