Recent Biden administration proposals rely heavily on revenue from better IRS tax collections to fund spending initiatives. The American Families Plan uses several avenues to reduce the tax gap (or the difference between taxes paid and taxes owed), from increasing the IRS’s tax enforcement budget to improving information technology and expanding reporting requirements.
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The original goal of AMTs—to prevent deductions from eliminating income tax liability altogether—can be accomplished best by simplifying the existing tax structure, not by creating an alternative tax which adds complexity and lacks transparency and neutrality.
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Neither Anchorage, Alaska, nor Portland, Oregon, impose any state or local sales taxes. Honolulu, Hawaii, has a low rate of 4.5 percent and several other major cities, including Milwaukee and Madison, Wisconsin, keep overall rates modest.
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August 15th was the deadline to take advantage of the premium tax credits originally provided in the Affordable Care Act and recently expanded in the American Rescue Plan. Future extensions may provide longer-lasting benefits, although the extensions may create trade-offs for consumer choice and program costs.
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Learn about the tax gap, what it is, how the U.S. compares to other countries, and recent proposals aimed at closing it. We also explore how much revenue could actually be raised through increased tax enforcement, the current challenges the IRS faces, and how stronger enforcement could impact taxpayers at large.
Tackling climate change and shifting the economy towards renewable energy has been a key part of the Biden administration’s agenda. However, this effort must first confront an overly complicated and non-neutral tax code, particularly in how it treats nuclear energy, for the White House to reach its ambitious goals.
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While it makes sense to ensure cryptocurrency transactions are treated similarly to other financial assets, the nature of these requirements as written are potentially unworkable.
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CBO data shows that the TCJA reduced federal tax rates for households across every income level while increasing the share of tax paid by the top 1 percent.
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Return-free filing could reduce compliance costs for many taxpayers, but would only be as good as the system it is administrating.
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Fifteen states have a marriage penalty built into their bracket structure. Does your state have one?
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To fully follow the Scandinavian model would require additional taxes that place a higher burden on middle-income earners, but instead, Biden proposes higher taxes on corporations and households making more than $400,000.
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A vehicle miles traveled (VMT) proposal gaining steam in Pennsylvania would be the equivalent of a state gas tax of more than $2 per gallon, and that’s not all the Commonwealth is considering.
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While Congress continues to debate how to pay for President Biden’s spending proposals in the fiscal year 2022 budget, it is useful to consider the economic impact of a range of financing options in addition to the President’s proposed tax increases.
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Louisiana legislators passed a tax reform plan that has received overwhelming support in both the House and Senate, but voters will get the ultimate say on whether that plan succeeds. In light of this, it may be valuable to walk through what is included in these reforms and what effect the changes will have on taxpayers.
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The good news is that lawmakers avoided raising taxes to cover the cost of the new spending and instead used some reasonable fees and asset sales. The bad news is that half of the offsets come from unused, debt-financed COVID-19 relief funds and the economic return on many of these investments is questionable.
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Finland has the highest excise tax on beer in Europe, followed by Ireland and the United Kingdom. Compare beer taxes in Europe this International Beer Day
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As lawmakers explore funding mechanisms for additional federal infrastructure investment, they should focus on permanent, sustainable, and transparent revenue options that conform to the benefit principle. Permanent user fees, appropriately adjusted to restore and maintain their purchasing power, would serve as ideal revenue sources for federal infrastructure investments.
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California pumps out the highest state gas tax rate of 66.98 cents per gallon, followed by Illinois (59.56 cpg), Pennsylvania (58.7 cpg), and New Jersey (50.7 cpg).
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