The variety of approaches to taxation among European countries creates a need to evaluate these systems relative to each other. For that purpose, we have developed the European Tax Policy Scorecard—a relative comparison of European countries’ tax systems.
55 min read
Assessment limits are not sound tax policy. While well-intended, with hopes of preventing owners from being “taxed out of their homes,” the tax shifts, lock-in effects, and housing supply issues created by assessment limits make housing affordability worse.
State lawmakers around the country have begun their legislative sessions, and many are considering tax reform. This piece highlights some of the areas on which they are likely to focus.
4 min read
As a result of state-level reforms, the expansion of the sales tax base, and rising property valuations, North Carolina’s local governments have seen remarkable revenue growth in recent years.
13 min read
The 2026 Billionaire Tax Act, a California ballot initiative, would ostensibly impose a one-time tax of 5 percent on the net worth of the state’s billionaires. Due, however, to aggressive design choices and possible drafting errors, the actual rate on taxpayers’ net worth could be dramatically higher.
18 min read
As European countries have undertaken a series of tax reforms designed for budgetary stability, policymakers should focus on consumption taxes by making them more neutral and efficient.
15 min read
Forty-three states will ring in 2026 with notable tax changes. Eight states will see reduced individual income tax rates in the new year while four states will see reduced corporate income tax rates.
30 min read
In this episode, we break down what the OBBBA did, walk through our projections, and zoom out to other defining fights of 2025: Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs, the Supreme Court challenge over presidential tariff power, and the growing wave of property tax revolts across the states.
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
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
Each level of government provides its own services and therefore levies its own taxes to generate revenue for these services.
Spain’s central government could learn some valuable lessons from its regional governments and other European countries about sound tax policy.
7 min read
The State Tax Competitiveness Index enables policymakers, taxpayers, and business leaders to gauge how their states’ tax systems compare. While there are many ways to show how much state governments collect in taxes, the Index evaluates how well states structure their tax systems and provides a road map for improvement.
122 min read
Taxes are an important part of the mix, and modernizing a state’s tax structure helps position it for growth. States that rank better on the Index have better-structured tax codes, and states with better-structured tax codes get Wins Above Replacement.
5 min read
In 2025, the Texas legislature sought to make the state more competitive for small businesses by exempting a greater amount of business personal property from taxation, reducing compliance burdens at the cost of a trivial amount of revenue.
3 min read
While there are many factors that affect a country’s economic performance, taxes play an important role. A well-structured tax code is easy for taxpayers to comply with and can promote economic development while raising sufficient revenue for a government’s priorities.
93 min read
When property values soar, homeowners can end up paying significantly higher taxes for basically the same services. Thankfully, there is a solution.
With property tax bills on the rise, homeowners are searching for answers—and some even want to abolish the tax altogether. In this episode, we break down why property taxes are increasing, common but flawed solutions, and why the property tax remains an economically efficient revenue source.
Backfilling forgone local property tax revenue through new state taxes is difficult because it dramatically shifts overall tax burdens, undermines local accountability, and cannot easily adjust for changing population mixes.
20 min read
Sean Bray interviews Dr. Jean-Philippe van West, Professor of International and European tax law at Vrije Universiteit Brussel, about the future of the EU tax mix.
10 min read