Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy

ITEP's Research Priorities

North Carolina Budget & Tax Center: NC Leaders Are Shirking Their Responsibilities To Our Children, Our State by Revisiting Leandro Lawsuit

November 17, 2023

The announcement that the NC Supreme Court will rehear the court case that affirmed children’s constitutional right to a sound, basic education is just another way in which North Carolina’s legislative leaders are attempting to rewrite the rules to further their agenda rather than the well-being of children. Read more.

Kentucky Center for Economic Policy: Local Sales Tax Amendment Could Lead to Wider Inequality Without Better Funding Local Services

November 17, 2023

Under Kentucky’s constitution, there are limits on the types of taxes the General Assembly may authorize local governments to levy, and local sales taxes are not allowed. The 2024 General Assembly may take the first step toward changing that if it considers an amendment to the constitution that would grant the legislature broader authority on […]

Policy Matters Ohio: Tax Policy For the People

November 10, 2023

Every family in Ohio should be able to afford healthy food, a safe home, health care and the other elements of a good life. Ohio has the resources to make this a reality. Too often, however, our elected officials choose to use those resources to enrich their already wealthy supporters and do whatever else it […]

The Lever: The TurboTax Scam

November 9, 2023

Tax prep companies claim a government-run direct-file system would be expensive — but it could cost less than the federal subsidies going to the industry. Read more.

Bloomberg: Election-Day Ballot Measures Offer Preview of 2024 Fights

November 6, 2023

Ahead of next year’s presidential election, voters will weigh state and local proposals on abortion, taxes and housing. Read more.

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America Used to Have a Wealth Tax: The Forgotten History of the General Property Tax

November 2, 2023 • By Carl Davis, Eli Byerly-Duke

Over time, broad wealth taxes were whittled away to become the narrower property taxes we have today. These selective wealth taxes apply to the kinds of wealth that make up a large share of middle-class families’ net worth (like homes and cars), but usually exempt most of the net worth of the wealthy (like business equity, bonds, and pooled investment funds).The rationale for this pared-back approach to wealth taxation has grown weaker in recent decades as inequality has worsened, the share of wealth held outside of real estate has increased, and the tools needed to administer a broad wealth tax…

DC Fiscal Policy Institute: Taxing Capital Gains More Robustly Can Help Reduce DC’s Racial Wealth Gap

November 1, 2023

The federal and DC governments tax income from wealth more favorably than income from work. This preferential treatment means we under tax the most well-off, tax their wealth less often, and, in some cases, allow them to accumulate fortunes and pass vast sums of wealth to heirs tax-free. Read more.

America’s Voice: Debunking Five Of The Scary Lies That Republicans Tell About Immigrants

November 1, 2023

While Halloween comes around only once a year, Republicans can’t help but tell terrifying stories about scary brown people all year long. Of course, these horror stories are complete lies, yet we still see and hear them in campaign speeches, tweets, and Congressional hearings. Let’s debunk five of the worst lies about immigrants. Read more.

News and Tribune (Indiana): Editorial: Raising Sales Tax Would Hurt Poor Hoosiers

November 1, 2023

With statewide elections on the doorstep, some 2024 candidates are playing on a familiar ploy in calling for a reduction or an end to Indiana’s income tax. The most popular idea floated by those who are campaigning on the proposal, including current lieutenant governor and gubernatorial hopeful Suzanne Crouch, is to replace a sizable portion […]

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Power to the People: How Workers Can Fight Tax Inequity

October 31, 2023 • By Brakeyshia Samms

Workers of all races and ethnicities are confronting a tax code that puts them at a disadvantage relative to those with immense wealth, and people of color and women are among those most likely to be negatively impacted by this injustice.

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Free Tax Filing Option from the IRS Would Benefit People of Color, Contrary to Corporate Warnings

October 30, 2023 • By Brakeyshia Samms

There's a patchwork of programs and preparers for people of color to turn to when filing taxes, and most come from corporations that profit from providing a service that the government could provide more effectively and efficiently for free. The Direct File program can change that and is a great step forward in the IRS’ work addressing racism in the tax code.

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New from ITEP: Three Localities Are Leading the Way on Local EITCs

October 30, 2023 • By ITEP Staff

Refundable local EITCs improve the economic security of workers, families, and children. These credits put dollars directly into the pockets of financially vulnerable households, helping them afford the basics and achieve better health and economic outcomes.

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Three Localities are Boosting Communities with Refundable EITCs; Others Should Follow Suit

October 30, 2023 • By Kamolika Das

Most states already offer their own Earned Income Tax Credits, typically matching a certain percentage of residents’ federal EITC, but this is still a rarity among localities.

New York Times: Why Do We Enrich Older Americans at the Expense of Everyone Else?

October 26, 2023

We older Americans are not only controlling national politics, we are consuming an ever larger share of our economy’s resources through programs like Social Security and Medicare, leaving younger Americans to foot growing bills for their parents’ and grandparents’ retirements. And politicians of both parties are refusing to recognize the consequences. Read more.

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On Corporate Tax Avoidance, Critics Take Aim at ITEP – and Miss

October 25, 2023 • By Matthew Gardner, Steve Wamhoff

In identifying companies that avoid taxes, ITEP presented evidence that our federal corporate income tax was not working the way most Americans think it should work. The public and lawmakers paid attention, including President Biden who then made the case that this demonstrated the need for reform. As a result, Congress enacted the corporate minimum tax, to make the tax system a bit closer to what most Americans want it to be. If you look closely at this, you might just see an example of democracy working.

Stateline: Blue and Red States Slash Taxes Despite Warnings of Hard Times Ahead

October 25, 2023

Since 2021, half the states have cut personal income tax rates. Read more.

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2023’s State and Local Tax Ballot Measures: Voters to Weigh in on Property Taxes, Wealth Taxes, and More

October 24, 2023 • By Jon Whiten

Even in this slow year for candidate elections, the decisions that voters in states and cities make could strengthen or weaken revenue for needs in their communities and could change how taxes are distributed across the income spectrum. In the places where tax fairness is on the ballot, much is at stake.

Accountable.us: Right-Wing Think Tank Competitive Enterprise Institute Using Supreme Court Case Moore v U.S. To Push Its Corporate Funders’ Anti-Tax Agenda

October 23, 2023

Moore v. US, which is set to be heard by the Supreme Court on December 5th, threatens to deliver a major victory to multinational corporations and billionaires hoping to avoid paying their fair share in taxes. Read more.

TIME: How Giant Corporations Can Still Get Out of Paying Taxes

October 23, 2023

For decades, multinational corporations—especially those based in the U.S.—have funneled billions of dollars in profits to tax havens, earning even more money for their shareholders. Read more.

ITEP’s Carl Davis: Who Pays New Mexico Taxes?

October 22, 2023

ITEP Research Director Carl Davis gave a presentation on New Mexico’s tax system to that state’s Revenue Stabilization and Tax Policy Committee on October 19, 2023. Click here for the slide deck.

Every Texan: Proposition 3 Will Maintain Texas’ Extreme Wealth Inequality

October 21, 2023

We all benefit when everyday Texans, regardless of where we live or what we look like, have a fair opportunity to prosper. Contrarily, a state tax system designed to favor the ultra-wealthy undermines all of us. In Texas, the wealth gap is so extreme that 66 billionaires living in the state own more wealth than 70% […]

Video: Tax Policy Experts Warn Indiana Tax Force Drastic Cuts Could Hurt Lowest-Earning Hoosiers

October 21, 2023

As Indiana seems poised to restructure its tax system in the next few years, some policy experts are urging the State and Local Tax Task Force not to make drastic cuts to the state’s individual income tax. Read more and watch the video featuring ITEP’s Neva Butkus here.

Testimony of Neva Butkus Before the Indiana State and Local Tax Review Task Force

October 20, 2023

Today ITEP State Policy Analyst Neva Butkus presented to the Indiana State and Local Tax Review Task Force. For a related blog from Neva, click here. For her slide deck, click here. Good morning members of the State and Local Tax Review Task Force, Thank you for providing me the opportunity to share ITEP’s findings […]

Wall Street Journal: How Will States Pay for Roads When Gas Taxes Evaporate?

October 20, 2023

As electric vehicles become more popular and gasoline sales decline, governments are struggling to find new ways to fund infrastructure. Read more.

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Eliminating Indiana’s Income Tax Would Jeopardize Public Services & Create a Windfall for the Well-Off

October 19, 2023 • By Neva Butkus

Meaningful investments in Indiana’s future require a smart, and fair, tax code that recognizes current economic realities and can raise a sustainable stream of funding  from those most able to pay.