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Carl Davis
Research DirectorJanuary 26, 2017
A Visual Tour of Who Pays State & Local Taxes
While it can be hard to look away from the important federal policy debates occurring right now in Washington D.C., state lawmakers across the country will also be debating consequential fiscal policy changes in 2017 that will deserve close scrutiny. The context of those debates will vary by state: from coping with major revenue shortfalls, […] -
Meg Wiehe
Deputy Executive DirectorJanuary 26, 2017
An Overview of State Tax Trends in 2017
Since the 2007-2009 economic crisis, rising income inequality and the role our public policies play in aiding or easing this trend have been an ongoing part of the public discourse. In spite of what we know about the growing gap between the rich and the rest of us, federal and state policymakers continue to sell […] -
ITEP Staff
January 26, 2017
Tax Justice Digest: A Visual Tour of Who Pays, 2017 State Tax Trends
In the Tax Justice Digest we recap the latest reports, blog posts, and analyses from Citizens for Tax Justice and the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Here’s a rundown of what we’ve been working on lately. New! A Visual Tour of Who Pays State and Local Taxes To help inform 2017 statehouse debates, ITEP […] -
January 25, 2017
State Rundown 1/25: Revenue Shortfalls and How to Avoid Them
This week brings more news of states facing budget crunches, a new state looking to eliminate income taxes, and plans to raise gas taxes to fund transportation projects. Be sure to check out the What We’re Reading section for a look at how repealing federal health reform could add to those crunches and a review […] -
Carl Davis
Research DirectorAlaska Gov. Bill Walker recently proposed tripling the gasoline and diesel tax rates paid by Alaska motorists to generate funding for the state’s infrastructure. In a different state, tripling the motor fuel tax might be a radical policy change. But Alaska’s tax has not been updated since 1970 and because of those 47 years of […] -
ITEP Staff
In the Tax Justice Digest we recap the latest reports, blog posts, and analyses from Citizens for Tax Justice and the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Here’s a rundown of what we’ve been working on lately. Trickle-down policies did not and will not work In December, Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback told the Wall Street Journal that […] -
Richard Phillips
Senior Policy AnalystThere are a lot of troubling components of the tax reform packages being proposed by President-Elect Donald Trump and the House GOP, but one that especially stands out is the push to give companies a tax break on the earnings they are holding offshore. Unfortunately, proposals rewarding the nation’s most egregious tax dodging multinational corporations […] -
Lisa Christensen Gee
Director of Special InitiativesJanuary 18, 2017
Kansas State of the State: Worlds Apart
Back in December, Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback gave an interview with the Wall Street Journal and suggested President-elect Trump should follow his state’s example and cut taxes as well as spending. The sheer gall of the suggestion belies the fact that Kansas’s tax cuts have resulted in credit downgrades, lack of adequate funding for essential […] -
January 18, 2017
State Rundown 1/18: Revenue Woes Piling Up Faster Than Solutions
This week we continue to track revenue shortfalls, governors’ budget proposals, and other tax news around the country, finding most proposals to be focused on slashing taxes and reducing public investments despite public opinion and economic research showing the benefits of well-funded state services and progressive tax policies. — Meg Wiehe, ITEP State Policy Director, […] -
Richard Phillips
Senior Policy AnalystMembers of Congress have floated fundamental changes to the tax code for years, but last week marked a ramping up of these efforts as Republican Speaker of the House Paul Ryan met with President-elect Donald Trump and his advisors to discuss how to move forward with tax reform in 2017. Plans floated by the incoming […] -
Richard Phillips
Senior Policy AnalystJanuary 17, 2017
State of Play: The Coming Debate Over the Ryan and Trump Tax Plans
If the incoming Trump Administration and Republican-lead Congress have their way, fundamental changes to the tax code are afoot. The most important similarity between the Ryan and Trump tax plans are dramatic reductions in the corporate tax rate and across-the-board tax cuts whose benefits primarily flow to the richest Americans. Because of their potentially catastrophic […] -
This week brings still more states looking for solutions to revenue shortfalls, multiple governors’ State of The State addresses, important reading on counter-transparency and local-preemption efforts, and more. — Meg Wiehe, ITEP State Policy Director, @megwiehe A Nebraska legislator this week diagnosed the state’s $900 million revenue shortfall in plain terms, describing it as “self-inflicted […]
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This week we bring you updates on major revenue shortfalls looming in Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania, as well as gas tax changes taking effect in some states and being debated in others. — Meg Wiehe, ITEP State Policy Director, @megwiehe Oklahoma lawmakers are weighing options to close the state’s $870 million shortfall. Up for discussion are […]
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Jenice R. Robinson
Communications DirectorThe Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) this week published a new policy brief whose conclusions may be surprising to those who don’t spend their days analyzing the intersection of state and federal tax policy. The brief, How State Tax Changes Affect Your Federal Taxes, outlines how the “federal offset,” or the deductibility of […] -
Jenice R. Robinson
Communications DirectorTim Cook is a persuasive CEO. In a wide-ranging interview published earlier this week in the Washington Post, he discussed his vision for the company, thoughts about leadership succession, and humbly admitted he has made mistakes. So it would be very easy to view as reasonable his declaration that Apple will not repatriate its offshore […] -
Aidan Davis
State Policy DirectorAugust 3, 2016
Fiscal Policy Shake-up Comes to Energy States
The sharp decline in oil prices since summer 2014 has allowed consumers to save hundreds of dollars annually at the pump, but it also has left some energy producing states clamoring to come up with policy ideas to make up for lost revenue. -
Dylan Grundman O'Neill
Senior Policy AnalystJune 24, 2016
Weird New Jersey Tax Debates Continue
The New Jersey Legislature is considering a proposal to increase the state’s gas tax but at the same time some lawmakers are insisting that that tax increase be paired with tax cuts for the wealthiest New Jerseyans. Perhaps most bizarre is that the state is considering providing a tax cut for retirement and pension income (a move that would benefit the best-off state residents) while also weighing cuts to the revenue that funds state pensions. -
Carl Davis
Research DirectorA new study released today provides the best evidence yet that progressive state income taxes are not leading to any meaningful amount of “tax flight” among top earners. -
Jenice R. Robinson
Communications DirectorThe Michigan legislature just approved a $28 million appropriation to provide immediate aid in response to the water crisis in Flint, Mich., where vulnerable children and families have been poisoned by toxic lead. This avoidable crisis partly has roots in the misguided movement to cut taxes so much that state and local governments have difficulty […] -
Jenice R. Robinson
Communications DirectorPublic outrage over the financial crisis may have subsided in recent years, but the lasting legacy is a nation that remains acutely aware of exploitative business practices that line the pockets of corporate executives and shareholders at the expense of ordinary working people. Perhaps this is why H&R Block and Intuit quietly lobbied for a […] -
Jenice R. Robinson
Communications DirectorJanuary 20, 2015
Who Pays? Report Brings out the Red Herring Brigade
Last week, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy released Who Pays?, a report that examines the state and local tax system in all 50 states. The analysis concludes that every state’s tax system is regressive, meaning the lower one’s income, the higher one’s tax rate. Not surprisingly, the report ruffled a few feathers. It’s […] -
Jenice R. Robinson
Communications DirectorSeptember 18, 2014
What’s the Matter with Kansas Is What Ails All 50 States
It’s easy to hold up Kansas as the poster child for regressive tax policies gone awry. By now it’s apparent Gov. Sam Brownback and his allies in the state legislature were wrong when they predicted lopsided tax cuts would boost the state’s economy. The state will have trouble funding priorities such as education and services […] -
Jenice R. Robinson
Communications DirectorSeptember 16, 2014
Poverty Data Not Surprising, No Matter How You Spin It
The top 20 percent of households captured more of the nation’s collective income (51 percent) than the rest of population, according to the Census report Income and Poverty in the United States: 2013 released today. This is consistent with what we know about worsening income inequality in this nation. Median household income remained relatively stagnant […] -
Jenice R. Robinson
Communications DirectorFar too often, lawmakers use tax cuts to score political points and throw around phrases such as “more effective government” to gloss over the lasting, negative effects of starving public investments. In the case of Kansas, public schools are paying the price. The state Supreme Court ruled last Friday that the state Legislature hasn’t allocated […]
Blog Categories
- Corporate Taxes
- Earned Income Tax Credit
- Education Tax Breaks
- Federal Policy
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- Immigration
- Inequality and the Economy
- Local Income Taxes
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- Local Refundable Tax Credits
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- SALT Deduction
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- Tax Credits for Workers and Families
- Tax Reform Options and Challenges
- Taxing Wealth and Income from Wealth
- Trump Tax Policies
- Who Pays?