Summary of the Latest Federal Income Tax Data, 2023 Update
The latest IRS data shows that the U.S. federal individual income tax continued to be progressive, borne primarily by the highest income earners.
43 min read
Featured Articles
What’s Missing from the Tax Burden Debate
When we discuss tax policy, the conversation inevitably turns to who pays, who should pay, and how much they should pay. Unfortunately, the tax burdens debate is often missing a key point: how income transfer programs—like Social Security or Medicaid—affect households’ tax burdens.
State and Local Tax Burdens, Calendar Year 2022
Tax burdens rose across the country as pandemic-era economic changes caused taxable income, activities, and property values to rise faster than net national product. Tax burdens in 2020, 2021, and 2022 are all higher than in any other year since 1978.
24 min readAll Related Articles
10 Common Tax Myths, Debunked
Identify some of the most common tax myths and tax policy misconceptions and learn how to separate fact from fiction. Discover why tax refunds shouldn’t be celebrated, why you should pay your income tax bill, and why certain deductions are wrongly labeled “loopholes,” among other useful facts. Improve your ability to counter misleading arguments about the tax code.
Analysis of Democratic Presidential Candidate Individual Income Tax Proposals
Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders have each proposed changes to the individual income tax, one of the largest sources of federal revenue. Our new analysis compares the economic, revenue, and distributional effects of the various proposals.
13 min read
Analysis of Sen. Warren and Sen. Sanders’ Wealth Tax Plans
New modeling finds that the wealth taxes proposed by Sen. Warren and Sen. Sanders would raise significantly less revenue than promised, face serious administrative and compliance challenges, and would increase foreign ownership of U.S. capital.
38 min read
Comparing Wealth Taxation and Income Taxes
A low wealth tax rate is equivalent to a high-rate income tax. The interaction between wealth taxes and the existing income taxes must be considered when analyzing a wealth tax plan.
6 min read
Reviewing the Deadweight Loss Effects of High Tax Rates
Deadweight loss effects demonstrate why policymakers should pursue a more efficient tax code to achieve distributional objectives, rather than pursuing high tax rates that create disproportionately high economic costs.
3 min read
Booker’s Plan to Eliminate Step-up in Basis and Expand the Estate Tax
Removing step-up in basis would encourage taxpayers to realize capital gains and it would plug a hole in the current income tax, while increasing federal revenue. Combined, however, with the estate tax, this would result in a significant tax burden on certain saving by requiring both the appreciation in and total value of transferred property to be taxed at death
2 min read
Senator Sanders Proposes a Tax on “Extreme” Wealth
Bernie Sanders recently became the second major Democratic presidential candidate to propose a wealth tax.
2 min read
Improper Payments and EITC Reform
2 min read
A Preliminary Look at 2018 Tax Data
Initial 2018 IRS tax return data shows that the TCJA expanded the use of several credits and deductions, made the standard deduction more favorable than itemizing, reduced tax refunds, and lowered taxes for most Americans.
4 min read
