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Individual Tax Compliance and Complexity

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2024 Election Insights | How to Fix Trump’s and Harris’s Tax Plans

Neither presidential candidate has a perfect tax plan. But what changes could Trump and Harris make to their respective tax plans to better serve American workers and the economy? In this episode, we dissect their plans and provide practical solutions for improvement.

Bob Stack Unpacks US Challenges in Global Tax

Bob Stack Unpacks US Challenges in Global Tax

Bob Stack, an international tax expert, explores the implications of the EU’s adoption of Pillar Two and the potential for streamlining overlapping policies. He also addresses the issues that the US faces in global tax policy with the upcoming elections.

2024 state and local tax ballot measures details analysis and tax ballot measure results

State Tax Ballot Measures to Watch in 2024

Taxes are on the ballot this November—not just in the sense that candidates at all levels are offering their visions for tax policy, but also in the literal sense that voters in some states will get to decide important questions about how their states raise revenue.

9 min read
Modernizing State Sales Tax Reform Options Guide

Modernizing State Sales Taxes: A Policymaker’s Guide

The sales tax is the second-largest source of state tax revenue and an important source of local tax revenue, but decades of base erosion threaten the tax’s share of overall revenue and have prompted years of countervailing rate increases.

72 min read
Kamala Harris unrealized capital gains tax proposal billionaire minimum tax

Analysis of Harris’s Billionaire Minimum Tax on Unrealized Capital Gains

In her campaign for president, VP Kamala Harris has embraced all the tax increases President Biden proposed in the White House FY 2025 budget—including a new idea that would require taxpayers with net wealth above $100 million to pay a minimum tax on their unrealized capital gains from assets such as stocks, bonds, or privately held companies.

5 min read
Taxes and interstate migration data from IRS and Census state migration trends show Americans moving to low-tax states 2024 interstate migration by state

Taxes and Interstate Migration: 2024 Update

The latest IRS and Census data show that people and businesses favor states with low and structurally sound tax systems, which can impact the state’s economic growth and governmental coffers.

8 min read
Do Americans Abroad Still Pay US Taxes?

Do Americans Abroad Still Pay US Taxes?

How does living abroad impact the taxes an American has to pay? Unlike most countries that tax based on residency, the US employs citizenship-based taxation, meaning Americans are taxed on their global income regardless of where they reside.

American retirement savings accounts including 401k and IRA contribution and withdrawals

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
TCJA compliance and TCJA complexity costs did the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act simplify the US tax code?

How Did the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Simplify the Tax Code?

Not every change in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act simplified the tax code. However, the TCJA reduced compliance costs overall for individual filers, and allowing fundamental structural improvements to expire would make the tax code worse.

5 min read
IRS compliance costs tax complexity and tax compliance costs US

Tax Complexity Now Costs the US Economy Over $546 Billion Annually

Americans will spend more than 7.9 billion hours complying with IRS tax filing and reporting requirements in 2024. This is equal to 3.8 million full-time workers doing nothing but tax return paperwork—roughly equal to the population of Los Angeles.

7 min read

How Are Olympians and Attendees Taxed?

The 2024 Summer Olympics are underway, drawing the attention of billions and continuing a tradition dating back thousands of years. But you know what else originated thousands of years ago and affects even more people? Taxes.

3 min read