In the waning days of the 2018 General Assembly, legislators passed House Bill 366 (HB 366), a regressive tax reform package that gives a tax break to the wealthiest but asks more of everyone else, especially low-income Kentuckians. In addition to widening income disparities, these changes will exacerbate existing racial and geographic inequality in our state.
ITEP Work in Action
Advocates and policymakers at the state and federal levels rely on ITEP’s analytic capabilities to inform their debates on proposed tax policy changes. In any given year, ITEP fields requests for analyses of policies in 25 or more states. ITEP also works with national partners to provide analyses of federal tax policy proposals. This section highlights reports that use ITEP analyses to make a compelling case for progressive tax reforms.
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ITEP Work in Action April 20, 2018 Kentucky Center for Economic Policy: New Tax Law Shifts from the Wealthy to Kentuckians of Color and Economically Distressed Regions of State
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ITEP Work in Action April 17, 2018 New Mexico Voices for Children: Celebrate Democracy- It’s Tax Day!
While it’s easy to tick off a list of the things we enjoy that are paid for out of our taxes, paying taxes is really a moral duty that we… -
ITEP Work in Action April 17, 2018 Maine Center for Economic Policy: Comparing the Democratic and GOP tax bills
Because of the federal tax overhaul spearheaded by President Trump and Congressional Republicans, the Maine Legislature is considering two competing proposals to change its own tax code. Lawmakers face a… -
ITEP Work in Action April 17, 2018 On Tax Day, a Look at How Federal Tax Changes Impact Arkansans
Taxes allow us to invest in public programs that help everyone, but recent federal tax cuts are shifting those dollars to the Arkansans who need it least. Those tax cuts are expensive–to the tune of $1.5 trillion dollars over 10 years. Nearly a third of Arkansas’s total operating budget is made up of federal revenue. This means that on top of federal budget changes, our state budget will also be forced to make cuts to things that Arkansas kids and families rely on today, like parks, community colleges, and firefighters.
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ITEP Work in Action April 16, 2018 NC Budget and Tax Center: North Carolina’s Upside Down Tax Code
Tax season comes to a close this week, and Tax Day serves as a good time to reflect on who pays taxes in North Carolina. The income tax is, naturally,… -
ITEP Work in Action April 16, 2018 New Jersey Policy Perspectives: Undocumented Immigrants Pay Taxes: County Breakdown of Taxes Paid
While undocumented immigrants in New Jersey now face greater threats from the federal government than ever before, new data at the state and county level released by the Institute on… -
ITEP Work in Action April 16, 2018 The Chronicle: Value Teachers, Unions to Better Education
It is not a coincidence these movements took place in Republican-led states in which tax cuts take precedence over funding education. An example is Kentucky House Bill 366, which would cut taxes of the state’s wealthiest residents while increasing taxes of low-wage earners, according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy.
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ITEP Work in Action April 13, 2018 Washington Post: Kentucky’s Tax Cut for the Top 5 Percent Survives Despite Governor’s Veto
Republicans in Kentucky’s state legislature overturned Gov. Matt Bevin’s (R) vetoes of their tax overhaul and budget plan Friday, capping a dramatic confrontation between members of the same party that has also seen thousands of teachers descend on the state Capitol in protests for better pay.
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ITEP Work in Action April 12, 2018 Washington State Budget & Policy Center: Five Essential Truths About Our State Tax Code
Unfortunately, many myths permeate the public discourse about our state tax code. At the Washington State Budget & Policy Center, we are committed to making sure you know the truth about that tax code – and the real solutions that must be enacted in Olympia to make it work for everyone. Because it is a tax code that doesn’t live up to our values. It isn’t set up to invest in our communities in the short and long term. And it is set up to favor corporations, special interests, and the ultra-wealthy over everyday Washingtonians. As a result, the tax code creates additional barriers to economic opportunity for many communities of color and people with low incomes.
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media mention April 11, 2018 CNN: Kentucky Governor Signs Controversial Pension Bill as Teachers Call for Rally
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 increase would affect those making less than $21,000 a year.
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ITEP Work in Action April 9, 2018 Vox: How Tax Cuts for the Rich Led to the Oklahoma Teachers Strike
Before the strike last week, the state legislature tried to avert the work stoppage by passing a $447 million tax increase that effectively gives teachers an average annual pay bump of $6,000. That concession from the state legislature didn’t meet the teachers’ full demands, but it was a huge win considering the state legislature hadn’t approved a tax increase since 1990.
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media mention April 6, 2018 Courier Journal: Kentucky Tax Reform Bill is a Break for the Rich but a Hike for Everybody Else, Study Says
The tax bill that zipped through the General Assembly on Monday will amount to a tax break for millionaires but a tax increase for 95 percent of Kentuckians, according to an analysis by the Washington-based Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy.
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media mention April 6, 2018 WUKY: A Tale Of Two Tax Studies
“This is a complicated tax plan with a lot of moving pieces, but the net result is clear: that it is middle-class tax hike. Kentucky’s poorest families and the middle class will end up paying more while the state wealthiest taxpayers are going to end up paying less,” ITEP analyst Aidan Davis says.
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ITEP Work in Action April 5, 2018 Lexington Herald Ledger: Study: GOP Bill Cuts Taxes for the Rich, Raises Taxes for 95 Percent of Kentuckians
A new study of the tax bill rushed through the Kentucky General Assembly Monday shows the changes it makes to the tax code are likely to lower taxes for the wealthy while raising taxes for 95 percent of Kentuckians.
The analysis, performed by the Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy in Washington D.C., a liberal-leaning think tank, studied the impact of the tax cuts and increases on Kentuckians.
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ITEP Work in Action April 5, 2018 Washington Post: Kentucky Legislators Send Tax Cuts for Wealthy, Tax Hikes for the Other 95 Percent to Governor’s Desk
The Kentucky legislature passed a sweeping tax overhaul this week, and now lawmakers are asking Gov. Matt Bevin to sign a bill that would slash taxes for some corporations and wealthy individuals while raising them on 95 percent of state residents, according to a new analysis.
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ITEP Work in Action April 4, 2018 Kentucky Center for Economic Policy: House Bill 366 Represents a Tax Shift Away from the Wealthy to Low- and Middle-Income Kentuckians
A new analysis of HB 366 by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) shows the dramatically skewed impact of the tax changes on Kentuckians by income group. As can be seen in the graph below, Kentuckians whose income puts them in the top 5 percent will see a tax cut, with those in the top 1 percent, whose average income is $1,042,000, receiving an average tax cut of $7,086.
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ITEP Work in Action April 2, 2018 Kentucky Center for Economic Policy: Tax Plan Is a Tax Shift with Troubling Long-Term Effect on Revenues
The General Assembly introduced a tax bill today that is a shift in taxes away from corporations and high-income people and over to low- and middle-income Kentuckians. Although the official… -
media mention March 29, 2018 Hawaii News Now: Nonprofit to State on Tax Savings for Low-Income Families: Check Your Math
The state miscalculated the benefits of the federal tax overhaul to low-income families in Hawaii, a new analysis concludes. The source of the confusion: The scope of the tax savings that the child tax credit benefit would offer very low-income families (those earning up to $10,000 a year).
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media mention March 29, 2018 Honolulu Star Advertiser: New Tax Benefits Likely Overstated for Hawaii’s Poorest
A nonpartisan Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, has estimated that Hawaii’s richest 1 percent, represented by households earning over $554,230, would save $39,420 on average next year under the new law. The group also figured that Hawaii taxpayers earning less than $26,620 would save $130 on average in taxes.
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ITEP Work in Action March 29, 2018 Colorado Fiscal Institute: Pies & Charts: Mid-Session Briefing
Pies and Charts is the annual mid-session briefing hosted by Colorado Fiscal Institute.
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ITEP Work in Action March 28, 2018 Minnesota Budget Project: Families With Children Could Pay Higher Taxes Under Tax Conformity
The complex set of tax changes in the recent federal tax bill creates a set of challenging decisions for states like Minnesota. Because Minnesota’s state income and corporate taxes use federal tax… -
ITEP Work in Action March 28, 2018 Hawai’i Budget & Policy Center: Effects of Federal Tax Cuts in Hawai‘i: Correcting the Record
Although corporate taxes are not reported on individual income tax forms, corporate tax cuts benefit those who own stocks, and the vast majority are owned by upper-income individuals. For that reason, ITEP included corporate tax breaks in its analysis of the federal tax law.
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ITEP Work in Action March 21, 2018 Idaho Center for Fiscal Policy: Considerations on House Bill 675
A proposal before the Legislature seeks to amend the child tax credit that was created through recent legislation passed by both chambers and signed by the Governor. This analysis presents… -
ITEP Work in Action March 20, 2018 Colorado Fiscal Institute: Forecast Five: March 2018 Revenue Estimates
As a result of TCJA, Legislative Council estimates the state will see increased revenue of $196.5 million in FY 2018-2019, and $329.8 million in increases in FY 2019-2020. However, new analysis from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy suggests the revenue increase next year could be closer to $28 million.
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ITEP Work in Action March 19, 2018 Iowa Fiscal Partnership: Passing Through a Special Break for Wealthiest Filers
The tax bill that recently passed the Iowa Senate included a provision from the recent federal tax cut bill that provides preferential tax treatment for certain kinds of business income earned mostly by the highest income taxpayers. The “Qualified Business Income Deduction” (QBID) provides a 20 percent exemption of that income from the personal income tax.