Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy

ITEP's Research Priorities

Toledo Blade: Ohio urged to spend surplus on children, pregnant women

May 11, 2021

A study by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy for Policy Matters estimates that those making between $40,000 and $61,000 a year would on average see a $7 reduction in their annual tax bills from the latest proposal. Those earning at least $490,000 would average a $612 break. Through April, with just two months […]

NBC Chicago: Child Tax Credit: Parents Must File Tax Returns by May 17 Deadline to Qualify

May 7, 2021

About 83 million children live in households that would benefit from the expansion of the child tax credit, according to a study from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. In addition, the poorest 20% of families would see income increase by more than 37% during the year that the policy is in place. Read more

WFAE: Duke Energy Among 55 Companies That Paid No U.S. Taxes Last Year

May 5, 2021

An analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a progressive think tank, finds that Duke and other large companies used lower tax rates and tax incentives to eliminate their federal liability. In Duke’s case, those measures turned what could have been a $176 million income tax bill into a tax credit. When companies […]

The Motley Fool: Stimulus Check Update: Direct Payments Worth $3,600 May be Headed Your Way Soon

May 5, 2021

There are also restrictions to who you can claim under the expanded child tax credit. In order to claim your child or children, you must: Have a valid Social Security number for your child Be related to the child Have had your child live with you for at least half the year Provide more than […]

US News: Americans Are OK With Biden’s Spending Plans: Poll

April 27, 2021

Biden has repeatedly lamented that corporations do not pay their fair share of taxes, using legal loopholes to avoid taxes. A report earlier this month by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy found that at least 55 of the nation’s top companies paid no corporate income taxes in 2020, despite collecting $40.5 billion in […]

CNBC: Elizabeth Warren takes aim at FedEx, Nike, Amazon in push for corporate tax hike

April 27, 2021

FedEx and Nike were mentioned in an April report by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy as companies that recently paid little-to-no federal corporate income taxes. “The delivery giant FedEx zeroed out its federal income tax on $1.2 billion of U.S. pretax income in 2020 and received a rebate of $230 million,” the report said. “The […]

CNBC: Calls to end $10,000 SALT deduction cap threaten Biden’s tax plan ahead of its release

April 27, 2021

In addition, most of the families that would benefit from doing away with the SALT cap would be wealthy white ones, according to a recent analysis from the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Black families are 42% less likely and Hispanic families are 33% less likely than white ones to see a tax break […]

CBS Philadelphia: Child Tax Credit: How Much Money Can Parents Expect In Monthly Payments?

April 27, 2021

he Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy believes that households accounting for 83 million children would benefit to some degree. Anywhere from eight to 12 million children live in households facing food insecurity due to lack of money, according to recent Census data from late 2020. Estimates suggest that expanding the Child Tax Credit would […]

Associated Press: Should states set pot policy by its potency? Some say yes

April 20, 2021

Potency taxes have an upside for states: more stable revenue than sales taxes, says Carl Davis of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a progressive think tank. That’s because sales tax totals can fall with prices in a maturing market. Read more

The Washington Post: Biden Wants to Crack Down on Corporate Tax Loopholes, Resuming a Battle His Predecessors Lost

April 20, 2021

More than 60 percent of U.S. multinationals’ reported foreign income is booked in seven small countries that promise to only nibble at corporate profits, about twice the share as in 2000, according to Bank of America. The tax avoidance efforts — entirely legal under U.S. law — resulted in 55 of the nation’s largest corporations […]

New York Times: Make Tax-Dodging Companies Pay for Biden’s Infrastructure Plan

April 18, 2021

American companies and companies that make money in the United States are not paying enough money in taxes. Even as profits have soared, tax payments have declined. Fifty-five of the nation’s largest corporations — including FedEx, Nike and the agribusiness giant Archer Daniels Midland — paid nothing in federal income taxes in 2020, despite collectively […]

The Guardian: US CEOs think Biden’s corporate tax rate hike will have negative impact – survey

April 12, 2021

A report released earlier this month from the progressive Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy found that at least 55 of America’s top companies, including FedEx and Nike, paid no federal corporate income tax because of loopholes and substitutes. The report found that the tax breaks cost $8.5bn in potential tax revenue. Read more

CNBC: Progressive group targets FedEx, Nike in campaign calling for higher corporate taxes

April 12, 2021

A report by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy says FedEx “zeroed out its federal income tax on $1.2 billion of U.S. pretax income in 2020 and received a rebate of $230 million.” The report says the lack of payments in taxes by some corporations is likely linked to historic tax breaks as well […]

Forbes: 98% Of CEOs Say Biden’s Corporate Tax Rate Hike Will Hurt Their Companies, According To Survey

April 12, 2021

55. That’s how many major U.S. companies—all part of either the Fortune 500 or the S&P 500 index—that paid no corporate income tax in 2020 thanks to credits and deductions, according to an analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy.  Read more

MSNBC: Corporate taxes can’t stay low while America crumbles

April 12, 2021

There’s no question that the tax code is extremely generous to big business. A recent report from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy found that despite being profitable last year, 55 of the biggest companies in the U.S. paid no federal income taxes. Corporations managed this through a combination of “long-standing tax breaks preserved […]

The Hill: White House sends mixed message on higher taxes

April 11, 2021

According to a report released Thursday by the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), the personal income tax increases in Biden’s campaign plan would impact only 1.9 percent of taxpayers for the 2022 tax year. That analysis was conducted assuming that tax increases applied to both single filers and married couples with income […]

The Sacramento Bee: Rich Californians have most to gain if Congress lifts cap on local tax deductions, report says

April 11, 2021

State residents earning more than $992,800, California’s wealthiest 1%, could see an average savings of $98,650 in 2022, according to data from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a Washington-based economic analysis firm. Overall, Californians would save $33.4 billion next year if the SALT limits are lifted—with $17.4 billion of that going to people […]

The Hill: Democrats see political winner in tax fight

April 11, 2021

As ammunition, Democrats are pointing to a recent report from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a progressive think tank, which found that 55 of the nation’s largest corporations — including Nike, FedEx and Salesforce — paid no federal taxes in 2020 despite enormous pre-tax profits. In some cases, the companies received a substantial federal […]

CNN: Jeff Bezos endorsed higher corporate tax rates. But it won’t cost him much

April 10, 2021

Amazon (AMZN) isn’t doing anything illegal or improper — or unusual. Few corporations pay 21% of their reported pre-tax earnings in corporate income tax. That’s because there are many ways to reduce the amount of taxable income subject to that tax rate. “They care a lot less what the rate is than they do with […]

Bloomberg: Plans for a Global Minimum Tax Revolution, Explained

April 9, 2021

Many large corporations do. At least 55 large U.S. companies, including Nike Inc. and FedEx Corp., reported paying no U.S. federal income taxes in 2020 even though they were profitable, according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. And some nations benefit by attracting corporations with low rates. Read more

New York Times: Corporate Taxes Are Wealth Taxes

April 8, 2021

Since the mid-20th century, however, politicians of both political parties have supported cuts in the corporate-tax rate, often under intense lobbying from corporate America. The cuts have been so large — including in President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax overhaul — that at least 55 big companies paid zero federal income taxes last year, according to […]

Newsweek: Top US CEOs Open to Corporate Tax Rate of 28%, Biden Says Trump Cuts Failed

April 8, 2021

Biden campaigned on not raising taxes on anyone making less than $400,000, which would severely limit Democrats’ ability to fund the infrastructure plan should the GOP and lobbyists convince Congress to squash a corporate tax hike. Biden criticized 55 of the largest U.S. companies this week for using “various loopholes where they pay not a […]

AlJazeera: Pros, cons and pragmatism: Biden’s plan to fund infrastructure

April 8, 2021

Matthew Gardner, a senior fellow at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, agrees. “The low cost of borrowing and the pressing spending needs we face right now make deficit and debt reduction a lower priority at the moment,” he said. Gardner sees the once-in-a-century disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic as a ripe opportunity […]

Miami Herald: Biden’s infrastructure tax hike worries some Democrats about impact on wealthy voters

April 8, 2021

To Democratic strategists, including those close to the president, the tax plan is finely calibrated to earn the most support, drawing extra revenue from the least sympathetic segments of the tax base. A report released last week from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a progressive group, said that more than 50 of America’s […]

Bloomberg: White House Sees GOP’s Corporate Tax-Cut Defense as a Big Loser

April 8, 2021

Biden said at least 55 of the largest U.S. companies paid no federal corporate income taxes in their most recent fiscal year. “It’s just not fair. It’s not fair to the rest of the American taxpayers,” the president said. He was citing a study by the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Read more