Carl Davis
Research Director
Areas of Expertise
cannabis taxes dynamic scoring e-commerce taxes education tax credits emerging trends in state tax policy state and federal gas tax supply-side economicsCarl is the research director at ITEP, where he has worked since 2008. Carl works on a wide range of issues related to both state and federal tax policy. He has advised policymakers, researchers, and advocates on tax policy issues in nearly every state. Much of his work relates to the link between taxes and economic growth, and the shortcomings of dynamic scoring and supply-side economic theories.
Carl is a leading expert on the funding of transportation infrastructure. His analyses of state and federal gas tax policy have helped to illuminate why the nation’s infrastructure revenues are insufficient, and how gas taxes could be reformed to improve their long-run sustainability.
As ITEP’s research director, Carl is responsible for exploring new and emerging trends in tax policy. In this role, he has authored reports on proposals to legalize and tax cannabis sales, to implement vehicle-miles-traveled taxes, to update the tax treatment of the “gig economy,” and to improve the enforcement of sales taxes as they relate to online shopping.
Carl has also conducted extensive research into private school tax credits. That research helped reveal the profitable tax shelters that these credits created for some upper-income donors to private schools and contributed to the creation of a new IRS regulation cracking down on those shelters.
Prior to assuming the role of research director, Carl worked as an analyst for ITEP and used its proprietary microsimulation tax model to perform tax incidence and revenue analyses for lawmakers and advocates across the country. Carl also previously worked as part of the State Economic Issues team at AARP. He holds bachelor’s degrees in both economics and political science from Virginia Tech and a Master’s in Public Policy from George Washington University.
Follow Carl on Twitter @carlpdavis
carl at itep.orgRecent Publications and Posts view more
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New Jersey Leads by Example with Its New Cannabis Tax
New Jersey lawmakers passed an innovative tax design that other states debating cannabis legalization should look to for inspiration. The state officially legalized cannabis in November when voters overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment by a margin of 67 to 33 percent. The amendment applied the state’s general sales tax to cannabis and allowed local governments to create their own taxes on the industry. The legislature added the most notable part of the tax structure last month with a Social Equity Excise Fee.
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A Conservative Supermajority on the Supreme Court Could Be a Boon to Wealthy Tax Cheats
By early next year, the Supreme Court could be operating under a 6-3 conservative supermajority that may unwind hard-fought progressive reforms across every area imaginable. While reproductive rights and health care are at the forefront of public discourse, the Court’s impact will extend far beyond these two areas. Voting rights, the battle against climate change, anti-discrimination laws, the separation of church and state and yes, even progressive taxation, are all at risk.
Media Mentions view more
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Bloomberg Tax: Taxing Tech Giants on Cash-Strapped States’ Agendas in New Year
The spate of proposals could mean higher tax bills for tech titans Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, and Netflix, in…
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Bloomberg: Musk Flees California. He Now Faces a Battle to Escape Its Taxes
Fear of rich people moving for tax reasons is overblown, says Carl Davis, research director at the left-leaning Institute on…