Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy

OpenSky Policy Institute: Modeling Details How Amended Tax Package Would Impact Nebraskans

April 18, 2024

Most Nebraskans who claim the state income tax credit on property taxes paid to public schools will see little change in what they pay resulting from the tax package to be debated today, the final day of the Legislative session. But for Nebraska’s lowest-income earners – households making less than $30,000 annually – the impact of […]

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: Black Women Best Framework Points the Way to Equitable and Just State Tax Reform

April 18, 2024

States and localities can realize more equitable, thriving economies by proactively addressing the historical marginalization and persistent exploitation of Black women through their revenue policies. State tax policy is not race-neutral but rather functions as a support system that upholds whiteness in politics and prosperity. Applying the Black Women Best framework — an economic principle that argues […]

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The Case for More Progressive State and Local Tax Systems, in Charts

April 17, 2024 • By Dylan Grundman O'Neill, Eli Byerly-Duke

In a new chart book, Fairness Matters, we further explore our Who Pays? data with new graphics that reinforce the findings in the main report and demonstrate how state-level tax decisions shape economic divides for better and worse.

Audio: ITEP’s Joe Hughes on the Need for a Well-Funded IRS

April 12, 2024

ITEP Federal Policy Analyst Joe Hughes appeared on the Oregon Center for Public Policy’s “Policy for the People” podcast, discussing IRS funding and Direct File.

Mother Jones: America’s 806 Billionaires Are Now Richer Than Half the Population Combined—a Lot Richer

April 11, 2024

Are you better off now than you were when Donald Trump was president? That’s a dumb question for Republicans to pose, because the answer by most measures would be, “Oh, heck yes!” But plenty of people feel otherwise, either because they are down a right-wing rabbit hole or because the poorer half of the population wasn’t doing […]

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These Three Local EITCs Are Boosting Family Incomes at Tax Time

April 10, 2024 • By Andrew Boardman

This tax season more than 800,000 households in New York City, Maryland's Montgomery County, and San Francisco are set to receive a boost through local refundable EITCs. These credits put dollars directly into the pockets of low-income households, equipping families with resources to better make ends meet and invest in their futures. In turn, they can help build stronger, fairer, and more resilient communities.

Oregon Center for Public Policy: Complete Reporting Would Make It Hard for Corporations to Hide Profits Overseas

April 10, 2024

Oregon can clamp down on multinational corporations shifting profits overseas, create a more level playing field for Oregon businesses, and raise millions in revenue by enacting “Complete Reporting” by large corporations. That law would make it difficult for multinational corporations to avoid Oregon corporate income taxes by artificially shifting profits earned in Oregon to subsidiaries […]

ITEP’s Miles Trinidad Testifies Against Weakening Hawai’i’s Estate Tax

April 9, 2024

HB 2653 would only exacerbate the regressive nature of Hawai’i’s state and local tax system and compound the preferential treatment of income derived from wealth.

Video: Rep. David Trone Discusses Corporate Tax Avoidance at House Budget Committee Hearing

April 1, 2024

His remarks were at a March 21, 2024 House Budget Committee hearing on President Biden’s proposed budget.

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Biden Is Right: Corporate Tax Avoidance Has Big Problems That We Can Fix

April 1, 2024 • By Jon Whiten

Sensible reforms to the corporate tax system can help both crack down on corporate tax avoidance and ensure companies that are flourishing are paying their share for the public infrastructure that forms the building blocks of their success.

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The Estate Tax Should Help to Level the Playing Field. Instead it’s Letting the Rich Get Richer.

March 26, 2024 • By Amy Hanauer

The federal estate tax should ensure that family dynasties who’ve amassed enormous fortunes pay their fair share in taxes. But because policymakers have repeatedly doubled and tripled the immense sums that can be passed on before the tax kicks in, the estate tax today affects almost no one.

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States Move to Tax the Top in 2024

March 20, 2024 • By Marco Guzman, Miles Trinidad

These forward-thinking states are demonstrating the wide variety of options for policymakers who want to raise more from the wealthiest people, rein in corporate tax avoidance, create fair tax codes and build strong communities.  

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As Chicago Nears Vote on Mansion Tax, New ITEP Brief Looks at This Increasingly Popular Policy

March 14, 2024 • By ITEP Staff

Contact: Jon Whiten ([email protected]) Chicago voters will on Tuesday decide whether to levy a higher real estate transfer tax on properties sold for more than $1 million to help fight homelessness. Regardless of the outcome in the Windy City, these “mansion taxes” are increasingly popular with local policymakers who are seeking innovative and progressive ways […]

Vermont Lt. Gov David Zuckerman: Fair Share

March 14, 2024

Today, I have an exceptionally important topic to talk about: taxes! Taxes have become a dirty word, and in many ways for good reason. Since the 1980’s there has been a significant shift in how much everyday people pay in taxes. Wealthy and high-income individuals have seen their marginal tax rates drop precipitously, while working […]

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ITEP Statement & Resources: Tax Fairness and The State of the Union

March 8, 2024 • By ITEP Staff

When it comes to tax fairness, President Biden has a clear and compelling vision. Make large, profitable corporations and the wealthy pay their share, reduce taxes on low-income and working families with robust refundable tax credits, and use the trillions of dollars in new resources to create the kind of America we all want to see.

The White House Fact Sheet: President Biden Is Fighting to Reduce the Deficit, Cut Taxes for Working Families, and Invest in America by Making Big Corporations and the Wealthy Pay Their Fair Share

March 7, 2024

President Biden is fighting to make the tax system fairer while Republicans continue to push tax cuts for the wealthy and big corporations. The President’s plan delivers tax cuts for families with children and working Americans, invests in America, and reduces deficits by trillions of dollars by enacting a new billionaire minimum tax and cracking […]

Washington Post: Biden: Ban Deductions for Firms Paying Executives More Than $1 Million

March 7, 2024

President Biden will call for blocking corporations from deducting the costs of paying salaries over $1 million from their federal taxes in Thursday night’s State of the Union address, part of populist-oriented tax proposals in the speech as the 2024 campaign kicks off in earnest. Read more.

ITEP’s Kamolika Das Testifies on Pennsylvania’s Upside-Down Tax Code

March 4, 2024

Below is written testimony delivered by ITEP Local Policy Director Kamolika Das before the Pennsylvania House Finance Subcommittee on Tax Modernization & Reform on March 1, 2024. Good afternoon and thank you for this opportunity to testify. My name is Kamolika Das, I live in South Philly, and I’m the Local Tax Policy Director at […]

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New Study: Corporate Tax Avoidance Remains Widespread Under Trump Tax Law

February 29, 2024 • By ITEP Staff

Contact: Jon Whiten ([email protected]) The tax overhaul signed into law by former President Donald Trump in 2017 cut the federal corporate income tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent, but during the first five years it has been in effect, most profitable corporations paid considerably less than that. The details are explored in a […]

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Tax Policy to Reduce Racial Retirement Wealth Inequality

February 6, 2024 • By Brakeyshia Samms, Carl Davis

Historic and ongoing discrimination have created stark racial disparities in the US, and the racial retirement wealth gap is one such example.

The Hill: House Panel Advances Tax Deal with Resounding Bipartisan Vote

January 20, 2024

A deal to reduce taxes for businesses and increase the child tax credit (CTC) made it out of the House Ways and Means Committee with broad bipartisan support Friday. Read more.

New York Times: What’s in the New Tax Deal?

January 19, 2024

Lawmakers on the House Ways and Means Committee will attempt a rare feat on Friday when they begin debate on something that rarely comes together in an election year: bipartisan tax legislation. Read more.

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How the Fairness of State Tax Codes Affects Public Education

January 19, 2024 • By Carl Davis

The findings of Who Pays? go a long way toward explaining why so many states are failing to raise the amount of revenue needed to provide full and robust support for our public schools.

Associated Press: GOP Lawmakers, Democratic Governor in Kansas Fighting Again Over Income Tax Cuts

January 18, 2024

Top Republican legislators in Kansas have renewed a fight with the Democratic governor over income tax cuts that have drawn bipartisan criticism as favoring the wealthy, with no sign of a break in an impasse that thwarted tax relief last year. Read more.