Build Back Better
No Reason to Water Down the Tax Reforms in the Build Back Better Act
June 30, 2022 • By Steve Wamhoff
There is no justification for recently reported efforts to scale back the tax reforms in the Build Back Better Act, a bill passed by the House of Representatives in November that would raise significant revenue and make our tax code more progressive by enacting widely popular proposals. (See ITEP’s report on the BBBA.) Of course, […]
Imagine a Better Tax Code, Use Evidence to Make It Real
February 16, 2022 • By Amy Hanauer
It’s become popular to urge people to imagine a better world. But on tax policy, the last year gives us ample evidence that lets us move far beyond imagining.
More Than One in Three Young Workers Would Benefit from EITC Reforms in Build Back Better Plan
February 8, 2022 • By Aidan Davis
Although the EITC expansion did not receive as much attention as the expanded Child Tax Credit, a new ITEP report shows the positive impact of allowing young workers without children in the home to maintain access to one of the nation’s most significant and effective anti-poverty programs.
Build Back Better’s Tax Provisions Would Help Advance Racial Equity
January 31, 2022 • By Brakeyshia Samms
Build Back Better can help ensure that all people are provided with the chance to lead healthy lives, have access to quality education, are treated fairly and justly, and thrive in today’s economy.
Why Tax Reform Should Remain on the Table
January 25, 2022 • By Amy Hanauer
In this country, wealthier than any other and wealthier than we’ve ever been, we can create a smarter, more equitable tax code that better taxes those most able to pay.
Revenue-Raising Proposals in the Evolving Build Back Better Debate
January 25, 2022 • By Steve Wamhoff
The United States needs to raise more tax revenue to fund investments in the American people. This revenue can be obtained with reforms that would require the richest and wealthiest Americans to pay their fair share to support the society that makes their fortunes possible.
Pandemic Policies Demonstrate Government Can Address Widening Economic Inequality If Policymakers So Choose
December 17, 2021 • By ITEP Staff, Jenice Robinson, Joe Hughes
We are surrounded by evidence that economic inequality is spinning out of control, yet we also see straightforward examples of how government can stop the downward spiral should it choose to do so. The Build Back Better Act, which invests in communities and ensures the wealthy and corporations pay their fair share, is one such example. Congress should pass it.
Tax Credits in Build Back Better Support Millions of Families
December 9, 2021 • By ITEP Staff
The EITC and CTC are proven poverty-fighting tools. The monthly CTC payments alone kept 3.6 million people out of poverty in October. This policy success is worth repeating.
CNN Business: This Tax Would Make Wealthy Corporations Pay Their Fair Share
November 24, 2021 • By ITEP Staff
Corporate America has perfected the art of dodging the taxes that everyone else pays. From 2018 to 2020, 39 of the largest companies in America paid zero dollars in federal income taxes, despite reporting a combined $122 billion in profits, according to analysis from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. And 73 others paid […]
House Passage of Build Back Better Bill Moves America’s Tax Code in the Right Direction
November 19, 2021 • By Amy Hanauer
The Build Back Better plan that the House passed today will transform the country and make our tax code more progressive, more equitable and better able to pay for crucial priorities.
Key Reform in Build Back Better Act Would Close Loophole Used by the Rich To Avoid Funding Healthcare
November 18, 2021 • By Joe Hughes
The proposal in the Democrats’ Build Back Better proposal applies the 3.8 percent Net Investment Income Tax to all profit distributions from partnerships and S-corporations so that this income of wealthy pass-through business owners no longer escapes.
Tax Credit Reforms in Build Back Better Would Benefit a Diverse Group of Families
November 18, 2021 • By Aidan Davis
The CTC and EITC provisions would have a particularly profound effect on the poorest 20 percent of Americans, who all will have incomes of less than $22,000 in 2022. Taken together, the EITC and CTC changes would lift the average income of these households by more than 10 percent.
Analysis of the House of Representatives’ Build Back Better Legislation
November 18, 2021 • By Carl Davis, Steve Wamhoff
If the bill becomes law, in 2022 federal taxes would go up for the average taxpayer among the richest one percent and down for the average taxpayer in other income groups.
ITEP Statement on President Biden Signing the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
November 15, 2021 • By Amy Hanauer
America does better when we invest in our people, our places and our planet. The infrastructure bill that President Biden signed today will restore and strengthen our physical infrastructure, making repairs and improvements that are long overdue. Now Congress needs to take the next step and pass legislation that taxes wealthy people and corporations to pay for our care and climate infrastructure.
Tax Provisions in the White House Build Back Better Framework: The Good and Bad
October 28, 2021 • By Amy Hanauer
The tax provisions in the Build Back Better framework released by the White House today include enormously helpful reforms but also some disappointments. The good news is that the plan would raise nearly $2 trillion over a decade from those who can afford to pay–the richest Americans and large, profitable corporations. The bad news is that some fundamental problems with our tax code would remain unaddressed.
A Surprising Idea from the Era of Reaganomics
October 27, 2021 • By Amy Hanauer
President Reagan is lionized by many for cutting taxes and government. But the story is more complicated. Reagan knee-capped regulation and much domestic spending, and early in his administration he slashed taxes in ways that drastically reduced revenue. Yet he vastly expanded military spending, so his cuts were only to things he disliked. Less known […]
Repealing the SALT Cap Would Wipe Out Revenue Raised by the House Ways and Means Bill’s Income Tax Provisions
September 23, 2021 • By Steve Wamhoff
There are several ways that the House leadership could avoid this problem. One approach is for lawmakers to replace the SALT cap with a different kind of limit on tax breaks for the rich that actually raises revenue and avoids disfavoring some states compared to others as the SALT cap does. ITEP has suggested a way to do this.
It’s Not About Farms: Don’t Let Lies Crush Biden’s Tax Plan
September 2, 2021 • By Steve Wamhoff
Several former Democratic members of Congress have joined a campaign to misrepresent President Biden’s proposal to close a huge tax loophole for wealthy people with capital gains. This proposed reform is the cornerstone of the president’s tax plan. If lawmakers fall for the lies, Biden's plan will collapse. Instead, they should do what is both popular and fair: enact the plan intact so that millionaires and billionaires no longer escape the federal income tax.
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