Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy

ITEP's Research Priorities

Jacobin: Joe Manchin and Mitch McConnell’s Case Against $2,000 Checks Is Complete Garbage

January 12, 2021

In all, the bottom 60 percent of income earners — who made less than $65,000 in 2020 — “would see an average income increase of 11 percent by a $2,000 payment,” according to the report from the nonpartisan Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP). That compares with just a 3 percent increase with only the […]

MarketWatch: Already Spent Your $600 Stimulus Check? Another May Be on the Way

January 12, 2021

If passed, the CASH Act — in combination with the latest round of $600 stimulus checks — would boost the incomes of the poorest 20% of Americans by an estimated 28.7%, according to research published by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a left-leaning think tank. These Americans had projected incomes of less than […]

The Business Times: The Wealth Tax Is Going Global

January 9, 2021

There’s no income tax in Washington state, home to some of the world’s richest people: Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos; his ex-wife, MacKenzie Scott; and Microsoft founder Bill Gates and former CEO Steve Ballmer. That’s led to a system that is the most regressive in the US, according to the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic […]

Law360: ITEP Says Incomes Of Poorest Would Rise 29% With $2K Checks

January 8, 2021

ncreasing economic payments to $2,000 from $600 as part of a coronavirus stimulus bill would have a “significant impact” on the households of lowest-income Americans, a report from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy has found.The study, published Wednesday, found that the poorest 60% of households — those with incomes of less than $65,000 […]

The Hill: Democrats vow to deliver $2K checks with control of Senate

January 8, 2021

But Democrats argue that the more-direct assistance to Americans is needed at a time when many are struggling to cover basic expenses. According to an analysis released Thursday by the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, people in the bottom 60 percent of income would on average see their income rise by 11 percent […]

The Wall Street Journal: Biden Tax-Increase Agenda Revived as Democrats Win Senate

January 7, 2021

Now, some of Mr. Biden’s ideas are much more likely to become law, said Steve Wamhoff of the progressive Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, who said that the president-elect’s plans are less far-reaching than some Democratic alternatives and are broadly popular with the public. “The issue was always, could Democrats get something on the […]

Austin American Statesman: GOP creates ‘socialism for rich’ and bupkis for the rest of us

January 7, 2021

A study by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy reported on the first year following the passage of the GOP tax cuts and found that 91 of the Fortune 500 companies effectively paid no federal taxes in 2018, and some even got refunds. Here are two examples from that list. In 2018, Amazon (whose founder […]

Bloomberg: The Wealth Tax Is Going Global

January 6, 2021

There’s no income tax in Washington state, home to some of the world’s richest people: Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos; his ex-wife, MacKenzie Scott; and Microsoft founder Bill Gates and former CEO Steve Ballmer. That’s led to a system that is the most regressive in the U.S., according to the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy: […]

Bloomberg Tax: Taxing Tech Giants on Cash-Strapped States’ Agendas in New Year

December 28, 2020

The spate of proposals could mean higher tax bills for tech titans Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, and Netflix, in addition to the millions of consumers using their services. Agencies will next year push more to tax tech companies “in ways that achieve parity with the traditional goods and services economy,” said Carl Davis, director […]

Barrons: Elon Musk Shrugs at Tesla’s $5 Billion Stock Issuance. ‘It’s an Entry in a Database.’

December 9, 2020

Musk has another good reason for moving to Texas: taxes. His 170 million shares of Tesla are worth $110 billion. And he could pay billions of dollars if he were to be taxed at California rates instead of Texas, which doesn’t have a state income tax. Indeed, the top 1% of California taxpayers pay an […]

Newsweek: Will Republicans Show They Can Reach Across the Aisle on Tax Policy?

December 4, 2020

Following is an excerpt of an opinion piece by Steve Wamhoff published in Newsweek: During his campaign, President-elect Joe Biden talked about raising taxes on rich people more than any candidate in recent memory—and he won. Beating an incumbent president is rare, but Biden pulled it off and appears to be the first presidential incumbent-challenger […]

The New York Times: In Blue States and Red, Pandemic Upends Public Services and Jobs

December 4, 2020

Meg Wiehe, deputy executive director of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, said Wyoming at least was dealing with the painful reality. “The bigger kind of cuts that will resonate with people are all going to come to a head in the early part of next year,” Ms. Wiehe said. “We’re staring down some […]

The Conversation: A better way for billionaires who want to make massive donations to benefit society

December 4, 2020

Aside from concerns that Amazon is anti-competitive, the U.S. government is investigating Amazon for labor violations. Its workers around the world are staging protests, and the company has retaliated by reportedly paying contractors to spy on them. Amazon paid nothing at all in U.S. federal income tax in 2018 on the more than $11 billion […]

International Consortium of Investigative Journalists: Tax chemicals industry to help curb pollution internationally, experts propose

December 2, 2020

Past research has shown how some of the largest chemical producers such as the German giant BASF or the American company DuPont have used sophisticated tax planning strategies to avoid paying hundreds of millions of dollars in the countries where they operate. In the U.S. alone, the industry enjoyed one of the lowest effective federal […]

The Hill: Biden’s Treasury pick will have lengthy to-do list on taxes

November 27, 2020

Key to Yellen’s ability to help Biden implement his agenda on taxes will be the relationships she develops with lawmakers. Steve Wamhoff, director of federal tax policy at the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, noted that many Senate Republicans are up for reelection in 2022, and some GOP positions on taxes do not […]

Motley Fool: One Big Change Kamala Harris Wants to Make to Increase Your Income by $500 a Month

November 24, 2020

According to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, as many as half of all workers and two-thirds of children in the U.S. would benefit from the LIFT the Middle Class Act. The act was introduced two years ago but is more relevant than ever. The extra cash would benefit those who are struggling financially […]

The Hill: Progressive tax reform should top Biden’s list of priorities

November 19, 2020

“President-elect Joe Biden won over 78 million votes, more than any presidential candidate has ever received, while unabashedly vowing to raise taxes on the wealthiest individuals and on corporations. Progressive tax reform should be among his early and top priorities.   Read the full opEd by ITEP ED Amy Hanauer in The Hill.  

Marketplace: Could the success of ballot measures to legalize marijuana add pressure for federal legalization?

November 16, 2020

Carl Davis, research director at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, studies states’ cannabis tax structures and he said one problem is that most states’ excise tax is based on price not weight. “In the states that have built their system around prices, if you see a big price cut happen, there’s going to […]

Yahoo! Finance: Most Americans are unlikely to see a tax hike under Biden’s presidency

November 12, 2020

If fully implemented, Biden’s tax plan would be a direct tax hike for just the top 1.9% of the U.S. population, according to research from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP). But it remains uncertain which of Biden’s proposals — if any — could become law. Read more

Washington Post: Fact-checking the ‘final arguments’ of Biden and Trump

November 2, 2020

This statistic on 91 companies comes via the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP). In a 2019 report, ITEP concluded that 91 profitable companies in the Fortune 500 did not pay any federal income tax, largely as a result of the 2017 tax law, such as through deductions for investment that Trump promoted […]

Yahoo! Finance: Here’s How the Biden Tax Plan Would Affect Each State

October 30, 2020

Biden’s plan would generate over $289 billion in tax revenue, according to research from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP). About 1.9% of the U.S. population would see an increase in taxes. The ITEP data broke down the impact by state. Population has a major impact on the overall total in tax increases. […]

New York Times: Say Yes to Progressive Taxation

October 29, 2020

California is at the top of that list, according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. But there is room for improvement. For the last four decades, property taxation in California has been constrained by Proposition 13, the seminal anti-tax ballot initiative passed in 1978. The measure limits property taxation in California to 1 […]

Newsweek: Joe Biden Tax Calculator—How Democrat Candidate’s Plan Will Affect You

October 29, 2020

A report earlier this month by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), a nonpartisan think tank based in Washington, D.C., noted: “Just 1.9 percent of taxpayers would see a direct tax hike (an increase in either personal income taxes, payroll taxes, or both) if Biden’s tax proposals were in effect in 2022. The […]

Fox Business: Trump vs. Biden’s tax plans: How much would you pay?

October 29, 2020

According to an analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy on the overall impact of Biden’s proposed personal income tax and payroll tax increases for 2022, taxes would be projected to go up by around $289 billion overall and about $279 billion, or 97%, would be paid by the richest 1%. Read more

CBS News: Comparing Trump and Biden’s Tax Plans

October 27, 2020

ITEP Senior Fellow appeared on CBS News to discuss President Trump and Democratic Presidential Candidate Joe Biden’s Tax Plan. Watch