Oregon Center for Public Policy: Reason to Hope for a Commercial Activities Tax (CAT) Accompanied by a CAT Fairness Credit
ITEP Work in ActionThe CAT Fairness Credit would be a credit on personal income taxes based on family size and income. It would cost about the same as the combined impact of the personal income tax changes and EITC increase, and would target relief to low- and middle-income taxpayers. Like the current EITC, the CAT Fairness Credit would be available even if it exceeded taxpayers’ personal income tax liability, and would be larger for lower income taxpayers and for those with larger families. It would also be doubled for elderly Oregonians, who typically don’t benefit from the EITC. See CAT Fairness Credit Design (PDF).