Select Media Mentions
Washington Post: Democrats look at expanding minimum tax on wealthy in exchange for state and local tax break
November 3, 2021
“The majority of benefits from repealing the SALT cap just go to the 1 percent,” said Steve Wamhoff, a tax expert at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. “If BBB [the Build Back Better legislation] is amended to include that, we could be looking at a bill that cuts taxes for a lot of […]
Newsmax: Dems Consider Upping Minimum Tax on Rich in Exchange for SALT Deduction Cap
November 3, 2021
Steve Wamhoff, an expert on taxes with the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, said that “the majority of benefits from repealing the SALT cap just go to the 1 percent. If BBB [the Build Back Better legislation] is amended to include that, we could be looking at a bill that cuts taxes for a […]
CNBC: Democrats still weighing changes to limit on state and local taxes deduction
October 30, 2021
One proposal, for example, removes the cap for 2022 and 2023 and restores it for 2026 and 2027, after it’s scheduled to sunset per the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. However, future changes and projected revenue may hinge on who controls Congress, said Steve Wamhoff, director of federal tax policy for the Institute on Taxation […]
Wall Street Journal: Corporate Minimum Tax Resurfaces
October 28, 2021
But there is little evidence that immediate expensing significantly encourages more investment, said Steve Wamhoff, director of federal tax policy at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a progressive think tank in Washington. That may be in part because a key audience for corporations—their investors—typically watch net income and per-share earnings, which aren’t affected […]
Business Insider:Biden Stock Buyback Tax: What to Know About the Latest Proposal
October 28, 2021
The plan aims to collect taxes from companies that dodge most of the 21% corporate tax rate. Companies including Amazon, Nike, and FedEx have avoided paying federal taxes for years through a collection of loopholes, tax breaks, and rebates, according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Read more
The Wall Street Journal: Biden Stock Buyback Tax: What to Know About the Latest Proposal
October 28, 2021
Supporters of the buyback tax acknowledge companies can instead shift spending to regular or special dividends, which would be taxed to the recipients. “Isn’t that the issue with stock buybacks?” said Steve Wamhoff, director of federal tax policy at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a progressive Washington think-tank. Read more
The Hill: Tech billionaires in the crosshairs of new tax proposals
October 28, 2021
The proposal is aimed at preventing large corporations from paying zero in federal income taxes. According to the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, at least 55 large U.S. corporations paid no federal income taxes in 2020, including FedEx and Nike. Read more
Forbes: Salesforce Billionaire Marc Benioff Pledges $200 Million For Reforestation, Climate Entrepreneurs
October 28, 2021
Benioff, 57, and his wife have in the past supported health care in San Francisco, donating $200 million since 2010 to U.C. San Francisco’s children’s hospitals. Salesforce, which is based in San Francisco and employs 65,000 people, paid no federal income tax in 2020 despite having $2.6 billion in net income in the fiscal year […]
The Economist: The Democrats target companies with giant profits but tiny tax bills
October 28, 2021
The structure of the minimum tax looks simple enough. Companies that report more than $1bn in profits to shareholders would pay a tax of at least 15% on those profits. The levy would be explicitly aimed at firms such as Amazon, which had an effective federal income-tax rate of just 4.3% from 2018 to 2020, […]
The Hill: Overnight On The Money — Senate Democrats lay out their tax plans
October 27, 2021
The background: The proposal is aimed at preventing large corporations from paying zero in federal income taxes. According to the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, at least 55 large U.S. corporations paid no federal income taxes in 2020, including FedEx and Nike. Read more
Bloomberg: How Democrats Could Tax Companies More—Without Undoing Trump’s Tax Cuts
October 22, 2021
However, Democrats would need to take a much more aggressive approach if they want to raise revenue to cover some of the gap from a company, according to Steve Wamhoff, the director of federal policy at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a left-leaning think tank. For example, Biden has floated a 21% minimum […]
Marketwatch: As Democrats’ tax proposals evolve, the outlook for the super-rich is improving
October 22, 2021
“There is no doubt that wealthy people are talking Democratic lawmakers into doing things that are not popular with the American public,” said Steve Wamhoff, director of federal tax policy at the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. For example, more than half of U.S. adults (59%) said they are bothered “a lot” that […]
Business Insider: Biden roasts 55 companies like Nike and FedEx for paying less in taxes than the price of a cup of coffee
October 21, 2021
To make the case, he’s referencing one of his favorite talking points when it comes to the corporate tax: Multinational corporations who paid $0 in income taxes. An April report from the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy found that 55 corporations including Nike and FedEx paid no federal income taxes on their 2020 […]
The Washington Post: Biden’s favorite stat — that 55 major corporations paid no federal income tax
October 21, 2021
The number comes from a report issued in April by the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP). The group studied the corporate filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission of companies listed in the Fortune 500, zeroing in on companies that posted profits. In 2020, ITEP found, 55 profitable companies indicated that they […]
Barrons: Even Scaled Back, Biden’s Tax Reforms Would Reshape Business
October 19, 2021
Following is an excerpt of an opEd by ITEP Executive Director Amy Hanauer: Despite the drama about getting majorities of lawmakers to support it, the tax bill before Congress right now would deliver fundamental reform. The Build Back Better proposal raises revenue from corporations and the wealthy, blocks corporate tax avoidance, and funds crucial priorities that […]
Fast Company: Is the Global Minimum Tax Enough?
October 13, 2021
The result of many months of negotiations, the decision means companies doing business abroad will have to pay a minimum tax of 15% on their overseas profits, leaving little advantage to continue various “accounting gimmicks” currently in play, says Steve Wamhoff, director of federal tax policy at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), […]
McClatchy: Biden’s spending plan has big income tax changes. Here are the Californians who would benefit
October 12, 2021
Chief beneficiaries of tax cuts would be parents and very low-income workers without children who are among the lowest 20% of income earners, which means those making less than $29,100 in California. Increases in the Child Tax Credit and the Earned Income Tax Credit help people in their income bracket. “This is going to have […]
Brinkwire: Update on the IRS Child Tax Credit for 2021
October 12, 2021
Only kids with Social Security numbers are eligible to claim the tax credit, CNBC reports. So, some lawmakers have proposed to allow kids with individual taxpayer identification numbers (ITIN) to receive the credit. Researchers at the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy think this change could benefit up to one million children. Read more
Associated Press: How US states help rich foreigners shield assets
October 10, 2021
The Pandora Papers revealed how hundreds of politicians, celebrities, religious leaders and drug dealers have used shell companies and trusts to hide their wealth and investments. “The Pandora Papers is all about individuals using secrecy jurisdictions, which we would call tax havens, when the goal is to evade taxes,″ said Steve Wamhoff, director of federal […]
Associated Press: ‘Pandora Papers’ bring renewed calls for tax haven scrutiny
October 8, 2021
“The Pandora Papers is all about individuals using secrecy jurisdictions, which we would call tax havens, when the goal is to evade taxes,” said Steve Wamhoff, director of federal tax policy at the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy in Washington. Read more
Politico: Democrats likely to throw billions in tax hikes overboard as spending plans shrink
October 8, 2021
“Democrats need to think about reforms to capital gains that prevent rich people from avoiding capital gains,” said Steve Wamhoff, a former tax aide to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) now at the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. “You can do all kinds of things to improve the tax code but if those people […]
Arkansas Times: Arkansas income tax cut plan favors the rich. Duh.
October 8, 2021
Analyses by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) show that plans to cut the top income tax rate would largely benefit Arkansans with the highest incomes and cost hundreds of millions in annual revenue. ITEP estimates that cutting the top tax rate from 5.9 percent to 5.5 percent would cost the state $138 million annually. […]
Yahoo! Finance: Democrats’ tax plan makes ‘baby steps’ toward racial wealth equity
October 6, 2021
By lifting up families at the bottom through tax credits and taxing affluent households more, Democrats can help narrow the racial wealth gap. But their latest plan may not be ambitious enough, according to experts, after they scaled back some of President Joe Biden’s initial proposals. “It’s baby steps,” Carl Davis, research director at the […]
Truthout: Elizabeth Warren Probes “Corrupt” Link Between Tax System and Private Sector
October 6, 2021
A report by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy earlier this year found that 55 large corporations, including FedEx, Nike and American Electric Power, paid $0 in federal income taxes in 2020. In fact, the effective tax rate was in the negatives for many of these companies, partially thanks to the 2017 tax cuts […]
Maine Beacon: Analysis: Dems’ budget plan would raise taxes on rich, cut rates for 80% of Mainers
September 25, 2021
A report released this week by a national policy group found that proposed changes to the tax code advanced by the House Ways and Means Committee to pay for the sweeping expansion of the social safety net within Democrats’ $3.5 trillion budget bill could result in a tax cut for 80% of Mainers while only […]
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