Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP)

ITEP's Research Priorities

Los Angeles Times: Ted Cruz and His GOP Colleagues Are Pushing Yet Another Tax Break for the 1%

March 19, 2026

The Capital Gains Inflation Relief Act of 2025 is just as unpopular as similar bills Sen. Cruz introduced in 2018 and 2021, neither of which passed. Steve Wamhoff of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy in 2019, “sounds logical until you think about it.” The legal and economic considerations haven’t changed since then. Read […]

Stateline: Republican Push To Increase Sales Taxes Would Fall Hardest on Lower-Income Residents

March 19, 2026

Lawmakers consider increasing sales taxes to offset budget cuts to property or income taxes. This will force lower- and middle-income residents, who spend a larger share of their earnings than the wealthy, to foot more of the bill for state services. Read more.

Los Angeles Times: Eliminating a Corporate Tax Break Is Pitched as a Way To Make Up for Federal Healthcare Cuts

March 17, 2026

Carl Davis, a research director at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, stated that there is growing support nationwide to repeal the water’s edge tax break as public awareness of profit shifting spreads. “Folks are outraged when they hear that these companies are pretending that they are earning their profits in the Caymans or […]

The Independent: Inside the Widening Income Tax Rate Gap for Residents in Blue States Compared to Red States

March 17, 2026

Eliminating income tax means lower and middle-income families will have to pay more. “Public services would be cut, other taxes and levies that fall more heavily on low- and middle-income families (including sales taxes, excise taxes, fees and fines) would be increased, or — most likely — both those things would happen,” Aidan Davis from […]

Newsweek: Poorest Americans in 9 States Pay More Because of Trump Tax Breaks—Study

March 17, 2026

InvestorsObserves’ report, based on analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, found that the impact of the Trump administration’s OBBB is heavily tilted in favor of those already at the top. Read more.  

Yahoo Finance: Elizabeth Warren Asks Meta, Amazon, and Others Why They’re Laying Workers off Despite Tax Perks

March 17, 2026

Sen. Warren asks the companies to detail their 2025 tax cuts, tariff refunds, any contributions to Trump’s projects, and why they laid off workers. Meta “paid an effective federal income tax rate of just over 3.5 percent in 2025,” Matt Gardner at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy wrote in an analysis last month, […]

NBC10: Pennsylvania Among States Trying To Balance Rise in Revenue With Gambling Issues

March 17, 2026

“The sports gambling sector is growing fast,” said Nick Johnson, an analyst with the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. “In a few states, it’s really starting to produce a pretty remarkable amount of revenue.” Read more.

Sen. Warren Probes Meta, Microsoft, Target, Companies on Mass Layoffs Despite Strong Financials and Trump Tax Handouts

March 16, 2026

The senator cited ITEP research in her letter to these major corporations. Read more.

ITEP Data Cited in The Working Americans’ Tax Cut

March 16, 2026

The bill exempts income up to the cost of living from federal taxes and asks millionaires to make up the difference. Read more.

Maine Center for Economic Policy: 6 Ways President Trump Is Shaping Maine’s Economy in His First Year

March 16, 2026

President Trump has generally pursued a set of policies that weaken the economies of the United States and Maine. The President’s second year shows no signs of reversing course, and a potential oil supply shock could drive prices even higher. Read more.

The 74: States Want To Help Families. The Child Tax Credit Might Be Their Answer

March 12, 2026

The CTC is “both an affordability and anti-poverty mechanism,” said Neva Butkus, a senior analyst at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. States and localities seeking to add or expand a child tax credit work with her team. As of late, Butkus notes that “lawmakers and advocacy groups come to us with poverty alleviation […]

Testimony: ITEP’s Brakeyshia Samms on Why Evanston Should Adopt a Property Tax Circuit Breaker

March 9, 2026

Members of the City Council,  Thank you for the opportunity to testify today about property tax circuit breakers. My name is Brakeyshia Samms, and I am a senior analyst with the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a nonprofit and nonpartisan research organization that focuses on local, state, and federal tax policy issues with an emphasis on revenue sustainability and […]

Oregon Center for Public Policy: Tax Cuts for the Rich, Higher Taxes for Everyone Else: The Net Effect of Trump’s Tax Policies

March 5, 2026

ITEP analyzed the combined impact of the Trump administration’s three biggest changes in tax policy so far. The net effect of these policies is tax cuts for the rich and higher taxes for everyone else. Read more.

California Budget & Policy Center: 5 Facts To Know About Corporate Taxes in California

March 5, 2026

Several large corporations pay next to nothing in corporate taxes in California, largely due to overly generous state tax breaks. Reforming the state’s corporate tax system is a necessary step to support the health and well-being of Californians and strengthen economic security for all. Read more.

Springfield News-Leader: Property Tax Caps on April Ballot in Several Counties Worry Districts

March 5, 2026

Rita Jefferson, local analyst at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, said this approach fails to get at the root problem. She said generally, property tax growth caps are done on a state-wide level, rather than county by county, and she called the 0% tax cap “extremely unusual.” Read more.  

ITEP Data Cited in New York Corporate Tax Bill

March 4, 2026

The bill authorizes a city business tax surcharge of twenty-five percent on the tax liability imposed on any business subject to tax as a corporation Read more.

MarketPlace: Trump’s Tax Breaks for Big Corporations

March 4, 2026

Matthew Gardner, a senior fellow at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, said, “No one’s been able to find any econometric evidence showing conclusively that these rules actually encourage economic growth at all. If anything, the most obvious takeaway is that these tax breaks are simply rewarding companies for doing what they were going […]

Barron’s: Trump Says His Tariffs Could Replace Income Taxes. Here’s What Tax Experts Say.

February 26, 2026

“This idea that we can use tariffs to pay for everything is just nonsense. It’s a fantasy,” Steve Wamhoff, federal policy director for the nonprofit Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, told Barron’s. “Replacing any substantial portion of the federal personal income tax with tariffs is not a proposal to be taken seriously.” Read more. 

NPR: Tariffs Cost American Shoppers. They’re Unlikely To Get That Money Back

February 26, 2026

Shoppers will have to wait for companies to get their refunds before any potential reimbursements might trickle down to them. And that could take a while. Read more.    

New York Times: In Washington State, Democrats Consider Breaking a Taboo: Taxing the Rich

February 23, 2026

Washington is one of just nine states that does not tax income. Last week, the State Senate approved what supporters and opponents alike call the “millionaires tax,” a proposed 9.9 percent annual tax on personal earnings over $1 million, enough to bring in $3.7 billion a year. Members of the state House must now decide […]

Governor Newsom Launches New State Investment and Philanthropic Collaboration To Continue Supporting Families Under Federal Assault

February 23, 2026

Undocumented immigrants contributed $8.5 billion in state and local taxes in 2022 — a number that would rise to $10.3 billion if these taxpayers could apply to work lawfully. People are afraid to leave their homes, children are left without their parents, and families unable to afford groceries. Families are even foregoing critical medical care. […]

Video: ITEP’s Brakeyshia Samms Talks About Race and the Tax Code on Colorado Fiscal Institute Podcast

February 23, 2026

Senior Analyst at ITEP, Brakeyshia Samms, joins the “Exploring How Race, Money, and Power Collide in the Tax System” episode of Colorado Fiscal Institute’s podcast.

Policy Matters Ohio: The Great Ohio Tax Shift, 2026

February 20, 2026

ITEP’s analysis examines two categories of changes to the Ohio tax code: changes made to personal income taxes and changes made to other types of taxes. Read more.

Audio: ITEP’s Kamolika Das on the Need for States to Raise Revenue in the Wake of 2025 Trump Tax Law

February 19, 2026

Kamolika Das talks about a current nationwide effort to raise revenue in states to replace billions of dollars in vital local and state funding for social safety net programs that were lost in last year’s Trump-GOP budget mega-bill that dramatically cut social programs while giving away huge tax cuts for profitable corporations and the rich. […]

Massachusetts Budget & Policy Center: Testimony Regarding an Act To Manage Federal Tax Changes in Massachusetts

February 19, 2026

The Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center (MassBudget) proposes that the state opts out the five most costly federal corporate tax cuts made in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Read more.