The OBBBA Senior Deduction Is Poorly Targeted Tax Relief
Narrowly targeted tax policies are rarely effective in achieving their goals, and the expanded senior deduction under the OBBBA is no exception.
4 min read
All Related Articles
Savings and Investment: The Tax Treatment of Stock and Retirement Accounts in OECD and EU Countries
Tax-preferred private retirement accounts often have complex rules and limitations. Universal savings accounts could be a simpler alternative—or addition—to many countries’ current system of private retirement savings accounts.
23 min read
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
‘Trump Accounts’ Could Be Better. Here’s How.
If the federal government really wanted to make saving more accessible for taxpayers, it would swap the proposal for Trump Accounts to replace the complicated mess of savings accounts currently available with universal savings accounts.
5 min read
Wisconsin’s Proposed Retirement Income Exclusion Would Shift Tax Burdens to Working Families over Time
With reports that Republican legislative leaders and Wisconsin Gov. Evers (D) have reached a budget deal for FY 2026 and 2027, it is worth examining two significant tax relief proposals included in the plan.
7 min read
What Happens If Social Security Runs Out in 2035?
What happens when the country’s most important retirement program runs out of money? Social Security faces a funding crisis by 2035. We unpack how the system works, why it’s in trouble, and what fixes could keep it afloat.
Kamala Harris Tax Plan Ideas: Details and Analysis
On tax policy, Harris carries forward much of President Biden’s FY 2025 budget, including higher taxes aimed at businesses and high earners. She would also further expand the child tax credit (CTC) and various other tax credits and incentives while exempting tips from income tax.
17 min read
Social Security: Lessons for Reform
Social Security is by far the largest federal government spending program. The latest trustees report shows the program is on a fiscally unsustainable path that will exacerbate the US debt crisis if its imbalances are not addressed in the near term.
33 min read
10 Less Harmful Ways of Raising Federal Revenues
If lawmakers are convinced that new revenues must be part of any long-term effort to solve the budget crisis or offset the cost of extending the TCJA, they must choose the least harmful ways of raising new revenues or else risk undermining their efforts by slowing economic growth.
7 min read
American Retirement and Tax-Preferred Savings Accounts, Tax Year 2018
To encourage greater saving, the US federal income tax provides tax-neutral treatment to some types of saving through a variety of accounts. The type of tax treatment, contribution limits, withdrawal rules, and use cases for contributions all vary by account, leading to a complicated system for households to navigate.
11 min read
Blog
Short FormHow Tax Reform Can Bolster Americans’ Shrinking Savings
With pandemic-era savings now fully depleted and the majority of Americans pointing to their finances as their biggest source of stress, one thing is clear: the US needs policies that help people save more.
4 min read
Sources of Personal Income, Tax Year 2021
Reviewing reported income helps to understand the composition of the federal government’s revenue base and how Americans earn their taxable income. The individual income tax, the federal government’s largest source of revenue, is largely a tax on labor.
9 min read
Details and Analysis of President Biden’s Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Proposal
President Biden is proposing extraordinarily large tax hikes on businesses and the top 1 percent of earners that would put the US in a distinctly uncompetitive international position and threaten the health of the US economy.
19 min read
Simplifying Saving and Improving Financial Security through Universal Savings Accounts
Universal savings accounts would boost savings for low-income households, allowing them to better withstand economic shocks, such as pandemics and recessions, and plan for major expenses, such as an expanded family, education, and housing needs.
36 min read
America Should Learn from Successful Universal Savings Policy Across the Pond
For U.S. policymakers looking to encourage greater saving and financial security, particularly among low- and moderate-income households facing serious affordability challenges, the experiences in both the UK and Canada indicate that universal savings accounts are an effective policy tool to help reach that goal.
4 min read
Savings and Investment: The Tax Treatment of Stock and Retirement Accounts in the OECD and Select EU Countries (2024)
Tax-preferred private retirement accounts often have complex rules and limitations. Universal savings accounts could be a simpler alternative—or addition—to many countries’ current system of private retirement savings accounts.
19 min read
Canada’s Tax-Free Savings Accounts Are a Huge Success. U.S. Lawmakers Should Take Note
For most Americans, saving is a taxing experience. Our neighbors to the north have found a better solution—and U.S. lawmakers should take note.
5 min read
After 90 Years, It Is Time to Wean Credit Unions off Taxpayer Subsidies
Credit unions’ privileged status as tax-exempt nonprofit organizations may have filled a market need during the Great Depression, but 90 years later, there is no longer a justification to subsidize these institutions.
How Recent Reforms to Retirement Saving Will Impact Taxpayers in 2024 and Beyond
With Secure 2.0, lawmakers recognized and addressed several flaws in the tax code’s treatment of saving and retirement, but there is continued work to be done simplifying and expanding savings and retirement options for taxpayers.
5 min read
Saving Americans’ Dwindling Savings
Americans are saving less. While the U.S. saving rate has regularly lagged behind its peers, it has yet to return to pre-pandemic levels. Increasingly, people are turning to credit cards to fill the gaps in their budgets.