Contrary to Popular Belief, Value-Added Taxes Found to Be Slightly Progressive
Value-added taxes (VAT) are traditionally considered regressive, meaning they place a disproportionate burden on low-income taxpayers. However, a recent OECD study used household expenditures micro-data from 27 OECD countries to reassess this conclusion.
5 min read
Nebraska’s Property Tax Compromise Provides Temporary Relief, but Structural Reform Is Still Needed
Tax credits like the ones approved in the Nebraska bill may help legislators buy some time to work toward a more permanent solution, but they are not, in and of themselves, an effective means of providing lasting relief or generating long-term economic growth.
7 min readEconomic Recovery and Deductions for Worker Training
Tax treatment can affect investment decisions. Extending expensing treatment (full and immediate deductions) to all forms of capital investment, human and physical, would help facilitate sustainable long-run economic growth.
2 min read
Nevada Hoping to Extract Revenue with Mining Tax Increase Amendment
Nevada is not alone in its need to find revenue, but it should take care not to embrace bad tax policy in the process. Significant rate increases, a shift in the tax base, and provisions which make it easier to hike taxes than to cut them would heavily burden the mining industry in the state.
3 min read
Where Does Kamala Harris Stand on Tax Policy?
What tax policy ideas did Harris propose along the campaign trail, and how do they differ from Biden’s plan?
4 min read
Estimating Neutral Cost Recovery’s Impact on Affordable Housing
Housing affordability was a major issue even before the COVID-19 crisis, but the current economic situation has made it more salient. Immediate support for people struggling makes sense now, but lawmakers should also consider long-term solutions to the problem of high rents, namely by expanding the supply of housing.
5 min read
Higher Taxes Might Not Be the Solution for Canada and its Provinces
First, the introduction of the wealth tax would significantly impact international capital flows and cause large economic dislocations in the short term. Second, provinces that are looking at raising their corporate tax rates might hinder capital attraction, growth, and economic recovery.
4 min read
Vermont May Be the Next State to Legalize Recreational Marijuana Sales
According to news reports, the Vermont legislature is ready to advance S54 this month or next, to legalize cultivation and sales of marijuana in the state beginning in 2022.
6 min read
Evidence Suggests that Tax Rates Influence Migration Decisions
Individuals respond to taxes by changing their behavior. Hence, when there are tax differences between countries, some might respond by moving to a lower-tax area. For higher-income individuals, the benefits of moving as a result of higher taxes are greater because they have more income or wealth at stake.
4 min read
Who will Ultimately Pay the Digital Services Tax in the UK? Amazon Passes the Cost Along to Sellers
When developing tax policy, lawmakers often ignore the incidence of a tax, or who actually pays the tax. Many times, this is different from who is legally required to pay the tax. Just because a 2 percent revenue tax applies to large digital companies does not mean that the companies will bear the entire cost of the tax.
1 min read