Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP)

ITEP's Research Priorities

New Jersey Policy Perspective: Taxing “Super Luxury” Home Sales Could Make New Jersey Affordable for More Residents

September 10, 2024

As the cost of housing in New Jersey continues to soar, making it increasingly unaffordable for many residents, the market for “super luxury” homes – properties with exceptionally high price tags – continues to rise at a faster rate than all other homes. Applying a higher fee to the sale of these expensive homes could generate hundreds of millions in revenue, helping to make the state more affordable for low-income and middle-class residents. Crucially, this tax would be targeted exclusively to the wealthiest households.

Herald-Mail Media: Maryland Taxpayers Can Use IRS Direct File Next Year: What to Know About Free System

September 9, 2024

Maryland officials backed a federal effort this week to make the process of filing your taxes “easier, simpler, and more affordable,” according to the governor, but forthcoming program eligibility details will reveal who may benefit.

Pew Charitable Trusts: How a Pandemic-Era Surge in Tax Collections Drove a Revenue Wave—and What It Means for Future State Budgets

September 5, 2024

When the COVID-19 pandemic ground the economy to a near-halt in spring 2020, states scrambled to adjust to an anticipated multiyear decline with drastic spending cuts and revised revenue projections. But fears of a debilitating recession were short-lived thanks, in part, to billions of dollars in aid from the federal government. Instead of extended shortfalls, from mid-2020 through the end of 2022, states experienced an unprecedented revenue wave. Collections recovered faster and at a sharper rate than states had projected in 2020 and continued to grow at historic rates, and lawmakers in many states have used the new revenue to…

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: Untargeted Property Tax Cuts and Limits Shortchange Schools and Local Economies

September 5, 2024

More than 50 million K-12 public school students are returning to classes for the start of a new academic year. At the same time, some states are cutting a major source of funding for public education: property taxes.

Democratic National Committee: VP Harris Backs U.S. Manufacturing, While Trump Oversaw Increased Offshoring of American Jobs

September 5, 2024

The Trump-GOP tax law enacted in December 2017 creates clear incentives for American-based corporations to move operations and jobs abroad, including a zero percent tax rate on many profits generated offshore.

The Nevadan: Trump’s Promise of Mass Deportations Could Devastate Nevada’s Economy. Here’s How.

September 3, 2024

A recent study conducted by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) found that undocumented immigrants contributed at least $96.7 billion in federal, state, and local taxes in 2022 — a number that would increase if they were granted formal work authorization. In Nevada, undocumented immigrants accounted for $507 million in 2022 tax revenue, the study found.

Financial Times: Silicon Valley’s Elite Rattled by Prospect of Tax on Unrealized Gains

August 30, 2024

A novel proposal to tax the unrealised gains of wealthy Americans has incited fury from Silicon Valley’s richest investors. US vice-president Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee for the 2024 presidential election, rolled out a tax plan last week aimed at raising nearly $5tn over a decade. It included support for the controversial tax proposal, which was also part of President Joe Biden’s federal budget plan for 2025.

AFP Fact Check: Posts Misrepresent Harris Tax Plan on Unrealized Capital Gains

August 30, 2024

Social media posts claim Kamala Harris' economic plan, were she elected president, would force Americans to pay tax on the rise in value of assets such as homes and stock investments, even if they are not sold. This is mostly false; the proposal in the current Biden administration's budget calls for a tax on "unrealized gains" on certain assets -- but only for households with a net worth of at least $100 million, or an estimated 0.01 percent of taxpayers.

The Independent: What We Know About Kamala Harris’s Tax Plans

August 28, 2024

Kamala Harris has pledged that strengthening America’s middle class will be a “defining goal” of her presidency, if elected. In her keynote address at the Democratic National Convention, Harris envisioned what she called an “opportunity economy” anchored by a “middle class tax cut that will benefit more than 100 million Americans,” standing in stark contrast to Donald Trump’s sweeping tax cuts that largely benefit America’s wealthiest households.

American University Center for Latin American & Latino Studies: Mass Deportations Could Create a US Recession

August 27, 2024

Irregular immigration is one of the most important issues in the presidential campaigns of the candidates, Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris. On the one hand, the Biden administration, of which Vice President Harris is part, restricted the number of asylum seekers entering the country, and on the other hand, Republicans are promising the “largest mass deportation program in US history” if they win the White House this fall.

MarketWatch: Kamala Harris Backs Biden’s Tax Proposals — Including a Tax on Unrealized Capital Gains

August 26, 2024

n the first few days of Kamala Harris’s 2024 presidential campaign, experts told MarketWatch that her stances on taxes probably would closely resemble those of President Joe Biden.

The Lever: Will Harris Finally Kill Wall Street’s Infamous Tax Break?

August 26, 2024

s part of their new 2024 party platform, Democrats have promised to close a notorious tax loophole that has long allowed Wall Street billionaires to pay a far lower tax rate than most Americans. Likewise, Vice President Kamala Harris has reportedly signaled she supports ending this tax break, which could net billions in government revenue.

La Opinión: Los indocumentados que Trump quiere deportar aportan millones de dólares a la economía

August 15, 2024

En una entrevista con la cadena ABC el pasado domingo, el compañero de fórmula de Donald Trump en la mancuerna presidencial republicana, JD Vance, evadió responder cuál será el proceso para identificar y deportar a millones de indocumentados, la pieza central de su campaña, y se limitó a recitar las usuales frases que son código de movilización para su base: frontera “abierta”, muro, criminales.

America’s Voice: Immigrants Contribute a Lot – Just Ask the Researchers

August 13, 2024

Recent research from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) reveals that undocumented immigrants contributed an astounding $96.7 billion in federal, state, and local taxes in 2022. Six of the most immigrant-populous states accounted for a combined $21.1 billion of these contributions, with California leading the way at $8.5 billion in tax revenue. The research further showed that these workers pay into programs that they’re barred from accessing, and in most areas pay higher state and local tax rates than their wealthiest neighbors. 

NPR Planet Money: The Economic Mind of Tim Walz

August 13, 2024

In recent weeks, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz burst from relative obscurity to co-headlining the Democratic presidential ticket. Walz’s career rocket launch was fueled by his cutting political rhetoric, folksy midwestern charm, jovial dad vibes, and progressive principles and accomplishments.

The Washington Examiner: The Coming Multifront Battle Over the Corporate Tax Rate

August 12, 2024

Next year is likely to see the biggest battle over the taxation of corporations in nearly a decade, a multifront engagement that will pit free marketers and big business against Democrats and populists. The corporate tax rate is set to be a point of negotiation in a historic “fiscal cliff” scheduled for next year, when the individual portions of the Trump tax cuts expire.

USA Today: Trump’s Lies About Undocumented Immigrants Hide the Truth: They Pay Their Share of Taxes

August 9, 2024

These payments fund essential public services and immigrants' own paths to legal status. Misinformation about undocumented immigrants in America is harmful and leads to stereotypes and policies that not only hurt immigrants but Americans and businesses, too.

Every Texan: Undocumented Texans Paid $4.9 billion in State and Local Taxes in 2022.

August 8, 2024

Undocumented immigrants are essential contributors to Texas’ economy and robust job growth. Regardless of their citizenship or immigration status, immigrant families pay state and local taxes to support vital public services that benefit all of us, such as schools and colleges, roads, parks, and libraries. A new report from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) confirms in 2022 1.9 million undocumented Texans paid a hefty $4.9 billion in state and local taxes. 

ABC News: What is Tim Walz’s Record on the Economy? Look at Minnesota.

August 8, 2024

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, has enacted economic policies in the state on key issues like job creation and taxes. The track record, stretching back to 2018, indicates how he may approach such issues if granted the nation's second-highest office. His positions could also help shape perceptions of the Harris-Walz ticket on the economy, which ranks as one of the most important issues among voters. Here's what to know about where Walz stands on key economic issues:

Bangor Daily News: Immigrants Add Value to the US

August 8, 2024

With so much focus on immigration, there is unfortunately much false information being shared about immigrants and their impact on the U.S. One common misperception is that immigrants are a drain on the economy. A recent national report adds new information to debunk such arguments. According to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, undocumented immigrants paid nearly $100 billion in federal, state and local taxes in 2022. More than half went to the federal government.

Mother Jones: How Trump’s “Mass Deportation” Plan Would Ruin America

August 8, 2024

This election cycle, former President Donald Trump has made one campaign promise the most prominent: Mass deportation. It is a long-standing vow. In 2016, Trump said he would deport the 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the United States. Once in the White House, he ordered sweeping worksite raids, enacted a ban on travelers from Muslim-majority countries, and deliberately separated migrant families, many of whom have yet to be reunited.

New York Times: A Walzonomics Primer

August 7, 2024

It’s been nearly 24 hours since Kamala Harris announced Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota as her running mate, catapulting him into the national spotlight. Unlike other candidates for the position, including Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania and Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona, the Midwestern politician hasn’t been closely scrutinized — until now. Here’s where he stands on some key business issues.

Fox Business: Kamala Harris’ VP Pick: What to Know About Tim Walz’s Economic Track Record

August 7, 2024

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz's economic track record is under the microscope after Vice President Harris' decision Tuesday to select Walz as her running mate on the Democratic Party's 2024 ticket.

Yahoo Finance: The Economic Risk of Trump’s Deportation Plan

August 6, 2024

The surge of migrants entering the United States during part of Joe Biden’s presidency has played to Donald Trump’s signature issue. Trump launched his first campaign for president in 2015 with an anti-immigrant rant, and the issue has worked for him ever since. So Trump, in his third campaign for president, has raised his bid on the issue, promising the “mass deportation” of up to 20 million people if he wins a second term.

ProPublica: How a Washington Tax Break for Data Centers Snowballed Into One of the State’s Biggest Corporate Giveaways

August 5, 2024

In 2010, as the country still reeled from the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, tech companies, real estate developers and rural lobbyists went to the state Capitol in Olympia, Washington, to press for a tax break for data centers.