Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy

ITEP's Research Priorities

Newark Star-Ledger: The 15 Mostly Red States That Mooch off NJ the Most

April 15, 2018

Under the Republican tax bill, New Jersey and five other states, four of which now pay more to Washington than they receive in services, will contribute a greater share of federal income taxes than they do now, according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a progressive research group. Read more

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: Corporate Taxes

April 15, 2018

ITEP’s corporate data was featured on Last Week Tonight with John Oliver

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ITEP Resources for Tax Day 2018

April 14, 2018 • By ITEP Staff

Two recent Congressional Budget Office reports underscore why the nation needs progressive tax policies. The first, published in March, demonstrates that tax and other public policies have a measurable effect on income disparity. According to CBO data, tax policies (think Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit) and means-tested programs (Children’s Health Insurance Program, Medicaid, food assistance, etc.) have helped alleviate growing income inequality. The second CBO report, released this week, reveals that the national debt will soar to untenable levels in the coming years due in part to the recent Trump-GOP tax cuts.

WNYC: Despite Myth, Undocumented Immigrants Pay Taxes But Receive Few Benefits

April 13, 2018

Yatziri has recently benefited from her DACA status, and her tax dollars have helped fuel the $2 billion dollars in state and local taxes contributed by DACA recipients across this country. According to Meg Wiehe, deputy director at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, this money was instrumental in a circuit court judge’s decision to halt […]

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10 Things You Should Know about the Nation’s Tax System

April 13, 2018 • By ITEP Staff

Everyone pays taxes, including those who earn the least. Our collective federal, state, and local tax system includes income taxes, payroll taxes (Social Security, Medicare), property taxes, sales and other excise taxes. The total share of taxes (federal, state, and local) that Americans across the economic spectrum will pay in 2018 is roughly equal to their total share of income.

GOP Authors of Tax Law Double Down in Campaigns

April 13, 2018

Roskam’s campaign estimates that his district will get $1 billion in tax relief in 2019 for individuals and pass-through businesses, citing data from the IRS and the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. While Democrats seeking to unseat the GOP tax-writers say voters have concerns about the new tax law, they expect that other issues […]

Vox: Immigrants Pay Taxes

April 13, 2018

The best estimates come from research by the Institute of Taxation and Economic Policy, a Washington, DC, think tank, which suggests that about half of undocumented workers in the United States file income tax returns. The most recent IRS data, from 2015, shows that the agency received 4.4 million income tax returns from workers who […]

Washington Post: Behind Oklahoma’s Teacher Strike: Years of Tax Cuts and an Energy Slump

April 12, 2018

Some states that have also recently pushed through big income tax cuts, including North Carolina and Ohio, did so while also broadening their tax base, according to Meg Wiehe of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. But until this year, Oklahoma did very little to balance rate reductions with increases in the tax base. Oklahoma raised […]

Reuters: U.S. Companies Found Ways to Avoid Taxes Before Tax Bill: Report

April 12, 2018

A report by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, or ITEP, said data showed how profitable Fortune 500 companies have routinely lowered their tax bills long before the Republican tax overhaul signed into law by President Donald Trump in December.  The 15 corporations had profits of $24.5 billion in 2017 but managed to obtain […]

CNN: Kentucky Governor Signs Pension Reform Bill

April 11, 2018

House Bill 366 has come under criticism from Democrats and analysts who say that it favors the wealthy and corporations, reported CNN affiliate WKYT. An analysis of that bill by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy found it would bring a huge tax cut for the richest 1% of residents, while the biggest tax […]

Tribune News Service: Amid Teacher Protests, Kentucky Governor Vetoes Budget and Tax Plan

April 10, 2018

Democratic lawmakers expressed support for Bevin’s decision to veto the tax changes. In a joint statement from Senate Minority Leader Ray Jones and House Minority Leader Rocky Adkins, the two Democratic leaders said the bills were not “transparently vetted” and referenced a study performed by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy that found that […]

Fiscal Times: Who Wins if Temporary Tax Cuts Are Made Permanent

April 10, 2018

Virtually all of the individual tax cuts are temporary, and making them permanent is being pitched politically as a win for middle-class taxpayers. But according to a new analysis from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, the extension the temporary tax cuts after 2025 will do little to change the overall distribution of benefits […]

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Same Old Same: 50-State Analysis Finds Extending the New Tax Law’s Temporary Provisions Would Mainly Benefit the Wealthy

April 10, 2018 • By ITEP Staff

While rhetoric may bill this tax law and proposed extension as a middle-class tax cut, the data tell the real story: the Trump-GOP tax law was and remains a giveaway to corporations and the wealthy.

Lexington Herald-Leader: Bevin Vetoes Entire State Budget and Tax Overhaul Plan

April 9, 2018

Democratic lawmakers expressed support for Bevin’s decision to veto the tax changes. In a joint statement from Senate Minority Leader Ray Jones and House Minority Leader Rocky Adkins, the two Democratic leaders said the bills were not “transparently vetted” and referenced a study performed by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy that found that […]

CNBC: Trump Organization’s Online Store Adds Virginia to Short List of States Collecting Tax on Its Sales, Bringing Total to 3

April 9, 2018

“You have Trump Tower New York and the Trump Store in Trump Tower pointing people to the site, essentially being salespeople,” Carl Davis, research director of the nonpartisan Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, told CNBC. A spokesman for the New York Department of Taxation and Finance said secrecy laws prevent it from commenting on […]

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Is the Trump Organization’s Sales Tax Avoidance More Aggressive Than Amazon’s?

April 6, 2018 • By Carl Davis

In recent weeks, President Trump has been raking Amazon over the coals for failing to collect state and local sales taxes on many of the company’s sales—a criticism that has some merit. But a new story first reported by James Kosur at RedStateDisaster, and then picked up today by the Wall Street Journal, provides fascinating insight into the sales tax collection habits of the Trump Organization’s “official retail website,” TrumpStore.com.

Associated Press: Amazon Ignores Trump’s Attacks as It Molds a Business Empire

April 6, 2018

Trump’s charge that Amazon pays “little or no taxes” may have merit. Matthew Gardner, a senior fellow at the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, said in February that Amazon “has built its business model on tax avoidance.” Amazon reported $5.6 billion of U.S. profits in 2017 “and didn’t pay a dime of federal […]

The Motley Fool: Amazon Is a Master of Tax Avoidance

April 6, 2018

Until the stock’s recent dive, Amazon was the second-most valuable company in the country, worth nearly $800 billion and behind only Apple. However, the company paid no U.S. income taxes on a $5.6 billion in domestic profits last year thanks to a $789 million windfall from the new tax law, according to the Institute on Taxation […]

Washington Times: Andrew Cuomo complains about tax breaks for wealthy — then signs off on N.Y. loopholes

April 5, 2018 • By Matthew Gardner

Matthew Gardner, a senior fellow at the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, said this appears to be another example of wealthy Americans “gaming” the tax system through special loopholes. “The whole point is to help New Yorkers to avoid a tax hike, and in particular to help wealthy New Yorkers avoid a tax […]

MarketWatch: Trump Is Jealous Amazon Is Better at Avoiding Taxes

April 4, 2018

In 2017, Amazon paid no federal tax on $5.6 billion in U.S. profits, according to an analysis by Matthew Gardner at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. During the previous five years, Amazon paid an effective rate of 11.4% on its profits of $8.2 billion, about a third the statutory rate, Gardner said. “More […]

Washington Post: If Trump Wants to Go After Amazon, He Has Options

April 4, 2018

Despite Trump’s complaints, Amazon started paying sales taxes in 2017 in most states after setting up warehouses across the country to expedite its delivery times. But Amazon does not collect sales taxes on goods sold by third-party vendors, and several big cities in seven states still are not collecting sales taxes at the same level as from local […]

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Cities Fail to Disclose Tax Incentives in Bids for Amazon’s HQ2

April 3, 2018 • By Guest Blogger

The Amazon HQ2 project would be the biggest in U.S. history as measured in projected jobs, yet little is known about the incentives cities have offered Amazon to lure its second headquarters. This lack of disclosure prevents public participation in the deal, including raising important questions about whether tax incentives that cities are offering are in the best short- and long-term interest of their residents. This is the main finding of Public Auction, Private Dealings: Will Amazon’s HQ2 Veer to Secrecy Create A Missed Opportunity for Inclusive, Accountable Development?, a Good Jobs First study released today.

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Teachers’ Strikes Are Emblematic of Larger Tax Challenges for States

March 30, 2018 • By Meg Wiehe

As other researchers as well as journalists have noted, teachers striking or threatening to strike over low wages and overall lack of investment isn’t simply a narrative about schools and public workers’ pay. It is illustrative of a broader conflict over tax laws and how states and local jurisdictions fund critical public services that range from K-12 education, public safety, roads and bridges, health care, parks, to higher education.

New York Times: Silicon Valley Warms to Trump After a Chilly Start

March 30, 2018

But Silicon Valley’s favorite thing about Mr. Trump is almost certainly his new tax code. Many tech companies lobbied for corporate tax reform for years before Mr. Trump signed the new tax bill. Tech giants immediately reaped the benefits. Under the new rules, Apple saved $43.7 billion in taxes, according to the Institute on Taxation […]

New York Times: The Facts Behind Trump’s Tweet on Amazon, Taxes and the Postal Service

March 30, 2018

Mr. Trump has made similar claims before about Amazon’s tax payments, both as president and a private citizen. After he mentioned it in August 2017, The New York Times reported: If Mr. Trump’s point was that Amazon did not collect sales taxes — which are owed by the purchaser and collected by the retailer — […]