While rising property values and taxes have intensified calls for reform, the reality is that property taxes fund the lion’s share of local services and lack a viable substitute. Excise taxes are far too narrow to fill the gap, and a poor candidate for filling any meaningful portion of it.
4 min read
Many policies, such as minimum wage levels, tax brackets, and means-tested public benefit income thresholds, are denominated in nominal dollars, even though a dollar in one region may go much further than a dollar in another. Lawmakers should keep that reality in mind as they make changes to tax and economic policies.
6 min read
Instead of implementing new wealth taxes, European policymakers should focus on making the current tax system more efficient and transparent.
Public Law 86-272’s vague language, limited scope, and failure to evolve with modern commerce has rendered it increasingly ineffective, burdening businesses with heightened litigation and compliance challenges.
26 min read
To design an effective excise tax policy around smoking tobacco & nicotine products, it is crucial to consider the concept of harm reduction.
6 min read
The Trump tariffs amount to an average tax increase per US household of $1,200 in 2025 and $1,600 in 2026.
45 min read
The recently proposed UK budget contains several tax measures that put a greater burden on the working class and ultimately fails to tackle the deeper structural problems of the UK’s tax code.
6 min read
Americans may be surprised to see just how much they are taxed for renting a car.
5 min read
Switzerland’s proposed 50 percent billionaire estate tax promises negligible revenue, risks economic harm, and strips cantons of their autonomy and tax competition.
5 min read
Since April, the tariffs that have been implemented in practice are mostly, but not exclusively, lower than what was originally threatened.
5 min read
Under nearly any design option, sending out $2,000 payments to Americans would increase, not decrease, the federal budget deficit. A better way to provide relief from the burden of tariffs would be to eliminate the tariffs.
4 min read
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
In most European OECD countries, corporate income is taxed twice, once at the entity level and once at the shareholder level.
4 min read
One thing remains certain: sending out tariff rebates does not provide a long-term solution for families, but ending the trade war would.
Examples from other countries and US states show that well-designed user fees can fund transportation infrastructure effectively.
19 min read
Several political leaders, including the White House, have touted the OBBBA as the “largest tax cut in American history.” While significant, the OBBBA is not the largest tax cut in American history; it’s the sixth largest.
3 min read
With Proposition 2 ½, property taxes in Massachusetts are still high, but without it, property tax bills would have risen significantly more than they already have in the past 40 years.
12 min read
Cigarette tax avoidance costs states billions in forgone tax revenue and necessitates additional spending on enforcement of the ineffective policies.
6 min read
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act contains several key policies that will affect how many taxpayers itemize, and how itemizers may benefit from deducting charitable donations.
4 min read
Each level of government provides its own services and therefore levies its own taxes to generate revenue for these services.