Teachers Are Omitting a Big Part of Financial Literacy
Most Americans don’t understand how the tax code works. According to a poll conducted by TaxEDU, a majority of respondents do not have a basic understanding of common tax concepts.
All Related Articles
New York Should Be Cautious About Governor’s Near-Sighted Budget
Although New York’s 2027 budget proposal avoids tax increases on income, sales, and property taxes, it is full of policy proposals that threaten the long-run integrity of the state’s finances and harm New York taxpayers.
5 min read
How Scandinavian Countries Pay for Their Government Spending
Scandinavian countries are well known for their broad social safety nets and their public funding of services such as universal health care, higher education, parental leave, and child and elderly care. High levels of government spending naturally require high levels of taxation. So, how do these countries raise their tax revenues?
7 min read
Who Really Pays for European Welfare States?
Who really pays for European welfare states? Many assume the answer is obvious: high-income earners contribute while low-income earners benefit. However, that assumption is only partly true, and often misleading.
6 min read
What’s the Best Way to Limit Property Tax Bill Increases?
When property values soar, homeowners can end up paying significantly higher taxes for basically the same services. Thankfully, there is a solution.
One Big Beautiful Bill Act Makes the Individual Income Tax More Complex
While the OBBBA brings some stability by making many of the TCJA’s reforms permanent, it generally fails to reform the tax code’s accumulating complexity.
31 min read
Tax Literacy Belongs in Every Classroom
Though high schools will continue to teach the next generation about civics, English, and math, one critical topic remains missing from many classrooms: taxes.
Michigan’s Tax Gamble Could Risk Its Competitive Edge
Michigan voters may soon consider a dramatic change to the state’s income tax.
Will Trump Accounts Actually Help Families Save?
Who are Trump Accounts really for, and will they actually help families save? With yet another savings vehicle added to an already confusing system, do these accounts solve a real problem—or just add more complexity?
Taxes and the American Revolution
The American Revolution was a tax revolt over the power to tax, not over tax burdens. It serves as a reminder that tax policy can have impacts (big and small) that last for centuries.
Progressive Income Tax on the Ballot in Michigan?
If Michiganders are interested in increasing the state’s spending on education or other priorities—and believe that current revenues are insufficient to support such an increase—there are several ways to do so without significantly affecting residents’ incentives to live and work in Michigan.
4 min read
Taxes and the French Revolution
The French Revolution provides insight into the relationship between a government and its citizens and serves as a reminder that tax policy can have impacts (big and small) that last for centuries.
Don’t Let the Loophole Lobby Decide the Tax Debate
If Republicans want a successful year for tax reform, they must put aside the extensive demands for niche provisions and, instead, approach this debate with a principles-first mindset.
New Efforts on Taxing Endowments Raise Questions on Neutrality and Revenue Collection
Republican policymakers in Congress are considering options to raise revenue as part of their expected legislative package in 2025. One such option involves raising the tax rate on university endowments first put in place as part of the TCJA in 2017.
4 min read
National Tax Literacy Poll: Assessing Taxpayer Knowledge and Perceptions of the US Tax System
Taxes and their broader impact are generally overlooked in American education. Taxes influence earnings, budgets, voting, and decisions on where to live, but do American taxpayers understand the US tax system?
25 min read
State Tax Ballot Measures to Watch in 2024
Taxes are on the ballot this November—not just in the sense that candidates at all levels are offering their visions for tax policy, but also in the literal sense that voters in some states will get to decide important questions about how their states raise revenue.
9 min read
Income Tax Earmarking and Grocery Taxes on the Ballot in Utah
Utah is the only state to earmark the entirety of one of its major taxes, but a measure on the ballot this November might change that.
4 min read
How Do Governments Raise Revenue?
The government provides various services at the federal, state, and local levels. How are they paid for? Taxes.
Reining in America’s $3.3 Trillion Tax-Exempt Economy
For over a century, lawmakers have exempted politically favored organizations and industries from the tax code. As a result, the tax-exempt nonprofit economy now comprises 15 percent of GDP, roughly equal to the fifth-largest economy in the world.
41 min read
National Tax Literacy Poll: Understanding the Tax Code
To make sound financial decisions and support better tax policy, taxpayers should understand the taxes they face. Unfortunately, most U.S. taxpayers do not know or are unsure of basic tax concepts.
6 min read