In its rush to pass a major rewrite of the tax code before year’s end, Congress appears likely to enact a “tax reform” that creates, or expands, a significant number of tax loopholes.[1] One such loophole would reward some of the nation’s wealthiest individuals with a strategy for padding their own bank accounts by “donating” to support private K-12 schools. While a similar loophole exists under current law, its size and scope would be dramatically expanded by the legislation working its way through Congress.[2]
Publications
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report December 14, 2017 Tax Bill Would Increase Abuse of Charitable Giving Deduction, with Private K-12 Schools as the Biggest Winners
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report April 2, 2013 Kansas House and Senate Proposals Set the Stage for Tax Hikes on Poor and Middle-Income Families
Earlier this year, Kansas Governor Sam Brownback proposed another round of personal income tax cuts (on top of those he signed into law last year).1 The House and Senate each responded with their own tax cut plans and are expected to reconcile their differences this week. To date, much attention has been given to the major difference between the House and Senate plans — the Senate bill includes permanently preserving a sales tax rate hike that was set to expire this summer while the House plan would allow the rate hike to expire. However, the long term impact of either plan should be of paramount concern to all Kansans because both plans eventually lead to the elimination of the state’s personal income tax.
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report February 1, 2013 Kansas Governor’s New Plan Increases Taxes on Poor Yet Slashes Revenue by $340 Million
Kansas Governor Sam Brownback proposed, for the second straight year, major tax changes during his State of the State speech. These new changes include lowering the tax rates to 1.9 and 3.5 percent, eliminating itemized deductions for mortgage interest and property taxes paid, and raising the sales tax.
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report May 24, 2012 Tax Bill Signed by Governor Brownback Makes Kansas an Outlier
Kansas Governor Sam Brownback recently signed into law Senate Substitute for HB 2117, a tax bill that dramatically changes the Kansas income tax structure. The legislation will cut taxes by… -
report May 17, 2012 Latest Kansas Tax Bill Carries $680 Million Price Tag and Raises Taxes on Those Least Able to Pay
A joint House-Senate conference committ ee is poised to approve a revised version of the tax bill recently sent to the Governor by the House of Representatives. An Institute on… -
report May 10, 2012 Three Strategies for Making Enacted Kansas Tax Plan Less Unfair and Less Costly
Yesterday, the Kansas House of Representatives passed, and sent to Governor Sam Brownback, a tax plan, Senate Substitute for House Bill 2117, that had been previously ratified by the state… -
report May 8, 2012 Kansas Tax Bill Would Cost $600 Million a Year While Hiking Taxes on Low-Income Families
Kansas legislators are set to vote on a tax bill recently approved by a joint House-Senate conference committee. An ITEP analysis of the agreed-upon tax bill shows that it would… -
report March 30, 2012 Tax Plans Put Kansas on Road Away from Fair & Adequate Tax Reform
Both the House and Senate have recently passed bills, loosely modeled on the Governor’s plan, that would reduce income tax rates, but their plans are different in very important ways.… -
report January 11, 2012 Kansas Governor Tax Proposal: Wealthy Kansans Pay Less, Poor and Middle-Income Kansans Pay More
Kansas Governor Sam Brownback unveiled his long anticipated tax plan last week. Sweeping changes to reduce the state’s reliance on its progressive personal income tax are at the core of… -
report October 4, 2011 Costs of Personal Income Tax Repeal in Kansas
Given the challenging fiscal climate facing Kansas, the proposed income tax plan should be thought of not simply as a tax cut but as a tax swap. News reports confirm…