Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy

ITEP's Research Priorities

Colorado Sun:Coloradans in the U.S. illegally — and their citizen families — were denied coronavirus aid. Will the state step in?

May 4, 2020

According to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, there are 4.35 million ITIN filers in the country, 89,500 of whom live in Colorado. Additionally, there are about 70,000 children with ITINs in the state, according to the nonprofit Colorado Fiscal Institute. Read more

LA News: California should support immigrants with expanded tax credit eligibility

May 4, 2020

According to Public Policy Institute of California, there are more than 2 million undocumented immigrants in the state, more than 6 percent of the population. Many, if not most, undocumented workers pay federal, state and local taxes. In fact, an analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy showed that undocumented immigrants living in […]

Bloomberg: Loan Forgiveness Deductions Left in Hands of Congress

May 1, 2020

The IRS could have gotten flack for allowing the deductions, tax professionals said, as the agency could be seen as effectively legislating. The agency didn’t immediately return a request for comment. “They’re there to administer the law, not to make it, and that’s exactly what they’re doing,” said Matt Gardner, a senior fellow at the […]

Arizona Republic:Undocumented immigrants pay billions in taxes and get no benefits. We’re going to help

April 29, 2020

The 2016 Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy report stated that 11 million undocumented immigrants in the United States are paying an annual estimated amount of $11.64 billion in state and local taxes by filing tax returns with their Individual Tax Identification Numbers. Read more

The Washington Post: Why Paying off Your Mortgage Early Makes Sense

April 24, 2020

The number of homeowners who benefit from the mortgage tax break plummeted following the passage of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which nearly doubled the standard deduction, with the result that fewer taxpayers itemized deductions on their tax returns. The tax law reduced the share of taxpayers claiming the mortgage-interest deduction from 23% […]

The State: Not Everyone with a Social Security Number Gets a Stimulus Check

April 18, 2020

In Alejandra’s case, a U.S. citizen born in this country will be denied her stimulus check. Of course, her husband falls into the same category of roughly 4.3 million immigrants who do not have a Social Security number but file taxes using a taxpayer identification number. The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy estimates that […]

Zero Hedge: Wall Street & Main Street ‘Rescues’ Look Increasingly Disconnected From One Another

April 18, 2020

As Steve Wamhoff of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy points out, the changes on the use of “pass-through” losses only benefit a select group. “It has to be stressed that this exclusively helps wealthy people,” Wamhoff says. “It only has an impact on people already making over $250,000.” Read more

Chicago Tribune: Agencies scramble to help Lake County undocumented immigrants impacted by coronavirus crisis

April 18, 2020

According to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, Illinois is one of six states that derive the most revenue from taxes paid by undocumented immigrants. California, Florida, New York, Texas and New Jersey, are also on the list. Read more

KQED: More ‘Peace of Mind’ for Undocumented Californians, Still May Not Be Enough

April 17, 2020

Unauthorized immigrants in California collectively pay about $3 billion in state and local taxes each year, according to the nonprofit Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Read more

Bloomberg Tax: Governors Ask Trump for $500 Billion in Federal Support

April 16, 2020

The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, in a policy brief Wednesday, outlined some tax code reforms to help states cope with shortfalls and safeguard for the future. Among the institute’s suggestions: personal and corporate income taxes for states heavily reliant on retail sales collections; increased taxation of digital transactions; decoupling from certain federal tax […]

Politico Morning Tax: We Are Shut Down

April 16, 2020

In any event, there’s also agreement across the political spectrum that those six states should get rid of those policies. “That would fix this particular issue and could generate revenue for these states that will be sorely needed to address the budget gaps they will surely face,” said Carl Davis of the liberal Institute on […]

ABC News: Tax provision in coronavirus stimulus will mostly benefit wealthy: Study

April 15, 2020

The measure lifted the limit for this year, and allows filers to apply it retroactively for the last two years. “It’s a really big deal for a really small group of wealthy people,” Matt Gardner, a senior fellow at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, told ABC News. Read more

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History, Economic Justice, and COVID-19

April 14, 2020 • By Amy Hanauer

Our elected officials have to listen to we the people and change their approach. Going forward, corporate voices cannot continue to steer. Instead, families, communities and working individuals have to lead our policymaking so it better helps people struggling now. 

The Hill: Business tax provisions in coronavirus relief law spark controversy

April 14, 2020

“Even someone who believes that Congress could loosen these laws to help businesses deal with the crisis would have to come to the conclusion that the CARES Act went way too far,” said Steve Wamhoff, director of federal tax policy at the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Read more

Pot Sector Cut Off From Federal Pandemic Loans, Turns to States

April 14, 2020

Pot has boosted state tax revenues in recent years, funding core state initiatives from education to infrastructure to health care. California collected about $629 million in taxes on cannabis in 2019. Washington raised more tax revenue than any other state in 2019, about $67 per person, according to a study by the Institute on Taxation […]

Bloomberg: 10 Ways States Could Fortify Tax Structures Ahead of Next Crisis

April 13, 2020

“There is nothing like a crisis to get states thinking about their tax structures and the things they can do to become more sustainable in the long run,” said Meg Wiehe, deputy executive director of Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Bloomberg Tax interviewed several prominent tax policy analysts and reviewed current research to identify […]

Connecticut Mirror: CT’s unflappable sales tax faces unprecedented threat from coronavirus

April 13, 2020

“Early indications are that consumers are cutting back or spending much less due to personal economic uncertainty,” analysts for the Washington, D.C.-based Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy [ITEP] wrote in a report predicting an unprecedented drop nationwide in states’ sales tax revenues. “Even people who still have jobs may substantially cut back their spending […]

Associated Press: Millions of taxpaying immigrants won’t get stimulus checks

April 12, 2020

Roughly 4.3 million mostly unauthorized immigrants who do not have a Social Security number file taxes using what’s known as a taxpayer identification number, according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Many say they pay federal taxes because they hope it will one day help them achieve legal residency and because they feel […]

NBC4: Millions of Taxpaying Immigrants Won’t Get Stimulus Checks

April 12, 2020

Roughly 4.3 million mostly unauthorized immigrants who do not have a Social Security number file taxes using what’s known as a taxpayer identification number, according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Read more

Bloomberg: Pot, Liquor ‘Essential’ to Keep Up Spirits, Revenue During Virus

April 10, 2020

The state of Washington raised the most cannabis tax revenue last year—$67.31 per person, according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. That compares with $60.11 per person raised in Colorado, $53.50 in Nevada, $38.83 in Alaska, $31.75 in Oregon, $15.93 in California, and $12.92 in Massachusetts, the institute said. Read more

Fox News: Coronavirus tax deadline delay: How it could hurt certain taxpayers

April 9, 2020

Further, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy noted that a payroll tax cut – which is another measure the president said this week he would like to see implemented – would largely benefit the wealthiest 20 percent of taxpayers. That’s because it would benefit those who were still employed, with bigger benefits reaped by […]

Bloomberg: Wealthy Win, Low-Wage Earners Lose in April 15 Tax Extension

April 9, 2020

“High income people will benefit,” said Matt Gardner, a senior fellow at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. “Anyone selling a whole bunch of stock on which they had income tax withheld — those people are getting a three-month interest free loan.” Individuals who earn less, and whose income is principally from wages, might […]

Wall Street Journal:This Coronavirus Tax Policy Idea Wasn’t on the Table. Then Famous Chefs Called the President.

April 6, 2020

Tax experts across the political spectrum say it makes sense to limit meals and entertainment deductions. “It’s essentially a personal expense masquerading as a business expense, ” said Matt Gardner, a senior fellow at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a progressive group. “It’s a hole you can drive a truck through in the […]

CNBC: When Will the Money Arrive

April 6, 2020

Right now, the answer is that you will still get a stimulus payment. But that may have to wait until you eventually file your 2020 tax return next spring. “Anything that happens in 2020 that’s not reflected in your 2019 or 2018 taxes, you’re not going to benefit for that particular thing until you can […]

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Returning to the Economic Status Quo After COVID-19 Crisis Should Not Be an Option

April 6, 2020 • By Jenice Robinson

It will take immense imagination, unyielding political will and a fundamental reordering of our policy priorities to adequately address the problems of this moment and unrig our economy.