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Corporate Income Taxes

Academic studies show that higher corporate tax rates depress worker wages and lead to fewer jobs. An Organisation for Co-operation and Development (OECD) study has found that the corporate tax is the least efficient and most harmful way for governments to raise revenue.

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U.S. Effective Corporate Tax Rate Is Right in Line With Its OECD Peers President Biden infrastructure plan Biden corporate tax proposals

U.S. Effective Corporate Tax Rate Is Right in Line With Its OECD Peers

Whether we use corporate tax collections as a portion of GDP, average effective tax rates, or marginal tax rates, each measure shows that the U.S. effective corporate tax burden is close to or above the average compared to its OECD peers. Raising corporate income taxes would put the U.S. at a competitive disadvantage, whether one looks at statutory tax rates or effective corporate tax rates.

4 min read
depreciation Capital allowances and capital cost recovery across OECD countries, 2021. Learn more about capital allowance and capital recovery.

Capital Cost Recovery across the OECD, 2021

The ongoing pandemic has once again highlighted the importance of investment. To address the economic fallout of the pandemic, several OECD countries have temporarily accelerated depreciation schedules for various assets.

31 min read
Bernie Sanders CEO Pay Act, Tax Excessive CEO Pay Act, Bernie Sanders CEO tax Work Opportunity Tax Credit WOTC, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Temporary Aid for Needy Families (TANF) Sherrod Brown, Ben Cardin

A CEO Tax Is the Wrong Way to Help Workers

In an effort to rein in perceived excesses in executive compensation, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and other co-sponsors have proposed to increase a company’s corporate income tax rate progressively based on the difference between median worker pay and CEO pay.

4 min read
UK tax reform, 2021 budget UK 2021 budget, UK corporate tax reform, UK corporation tax rate

Marginal Effective Tax Rates and the 2021 UK Budget

The 2021 UK budget introduces a two-year super-deduction of 130 percent for plant and equipment and a delayed corporate tax rate increase from 19 percent to 25 percent in 2023. These policies have differential impacts on marginal effective tax rates for different assets, implying investment incentives will not be uniform.

15 min read
EU business tax reform, European Union business tax reform, European Commission EU business taxation framework

The EU Determined to Reform the Business Tax

The EU recently launched a consultation to reform the business tax system, which will outline the priorities for corporate taxation over the coming years to meet the needs of a globalized economy that struggles to recover from the consequences of the COVID-19 crisis. It will also set EU actions regarding the ongoing international discussion on the taxation of the digital economy and a global minimum tax.

3 min read
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Wyden’s Energy Tax Proposal a Mixed Bag

As the Biden administration turns toward infrastructure, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Or.) has suggested including reforms to the way the tax code subsidizes energy production in such a package, eliminating 44 “tax breaks” for various activities in the energy sector and replacing them with only three.

3 min read
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Phasing in a Corporate Rate Hike Would Be the Worst of Both Worlds

The Biden administration has signaled its openness to raising the corporate tax rate, potentially by phasing in an increase over several years. While phasing in a tax increase, as opposed to hiking immediately, may seem like a reasonable middle ground, it would be the worst of both worlds because it provides old investment with a lower rate while penalizing new investment.

2 min read
UK 2021 budget Rishi sunak 2021 UK budget 2021

An Investment Boost in the UK’s 2021 Budget

The UK’s Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak released the 2021 budget, and most important for near-term growth is the significant boost to capital allowances.

5 min read
2021 combined federal and state corporate income tax rates. 2021 federal and state corporate tax rates. combined corporate income tax ratesDo corporations pay state and federal taxes?

Combined State and Federal Corporate Income Tax Rates in 2021

The state with the highest combined corporate income tax rate is New Jersey, with a combined rate of 30.1 percent. Corporations in Alaska, California, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Minnesota, and Pennsylvania face combined corporate income tax rates at or above 28 percent.

3 min read
UK tax reform, 2021 budget UK 2021 budget, UK corporate tax reform, UK corporation tax rate

The UK Should Not Ignore Problems with its Corporate Tax Base

While the UK is looking at ways to raise tax revenue to cover the revenue shortfalls and additional spending resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, short- as well as long-term, investment will be crucial in getting the economy back on track and ensuring economic growth.

3 min read

Evaluating Proposals to Increase the Corporate Tax Rate and Levy a Minimum Tax on Corporate Book Income

President Biden and congressional policymakers have proposed several changes to the corporate income tax, including raising the rate from 21 percent to 28 percent and imposing a 15 percent minimum tax on the book income of large corporations, to raise revenue for new spending programs. Our new modeling analyzes the economic, revenue, and distributional impact of these proposals.

46 min read