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blog
July 24, 2018
The Fight for Education Funding: State Revenue Needs and Responses in 2018
States’ need for revenue and increased investment in key public services is not unique to this legislative session. But the extent of disinvestment—particularly in education—has been a driving force behind policy discussion and state legislative action this year. In many cases ill-advised tax cuts coupled with persistent school funding cuts led states to this common fate, initiating a powerful and growing trend.
Here’s how lawmakers in a handful of state responded:
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report
July 24, 2018
Rep. Shuster’s Mixed Bag: Doubling the Gas Tax before Repealing It Entirely
This article examines the good aspects of Rep. Shuster’s infrastructure funding plan (a higher gas tax that is indexed to inflation), the bad (a flawed indexing formula and eventual gas tax repeal), and the downright ugly (tying the hands of a funding commission before their work even begins and refusing to ask more of high-income households).
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blog
July 19, 2018
State Rundown 7/19: Wayfair Fallout and Ballot Preparation Dominate State Tax Talk
In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Wayfair decision authorizing states to collect taxes owed on online sales, Utah lawmakers held a one-day special session that included (among other tax topics) legislation to ensure the state will be ready to collect those taxes, and a Nebraska lawmaker began pushing for a special session for the same reason. Voters in Colorado and Montana got more clarity on tax-related items they’ll see on the ballot in November. And Massachusetts moves closer toward becoming the final state to enact a budget for the new fiscal year that started July 1 in most states.
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blog
July 17, 2018
How to Fix the Broken International Corporate Tax Code
How should lawmakers fix the system? A new ITEP report breaks down how the international corporate tax code under the TCJA works, and how lawmakers can fix it. The report lays out three key principles for reform: equalize the rates, eliminate inversions, and create transparency.
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report
July 17, 2018
Understanding and Fixing the New International Corporate Tax System
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) radically changed the international tax system. It slashed taxes on corporate income, both domestic and foreign. It encouraged U.S. multinational corporations to shift jobs, profits, and tangible property abroad, and keep intangibles home. This report describes the new international tax system—and its many gaps—and also provides a road map for how to fix these gaps and surveys recent legislative approaches.
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blog
July 12, 2018
18 States Will Take Holidays from Sound Tax Policy This Year
State sales tax holidays, our newly updated policy brief shows, are the equivalent of the bad kind of holiday vacation: tax policy that sounds nice at first but ultimately cuts corners, wastes money, precludes better options, and leaves states worse off than they would be without them. Unfortunately, while several states have wised up about sales tax holidays in recent years, 18 states will fall for the superficial attraction of these tax policy gimmicks in 2018.
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brief
July 12, 2018
Sales Tax Holidays: An Ineffective Alternative to Real Sales Tax Reform
An updated version of this brief for 2019 is available here. Read this report in PDF. Overview Sales taxes are an important revenue source, composing… -
blog
July 11, 2018
The Immediate Economic Impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Could be Even Less Than Expected
Now, new research from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco finds that the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act may not be so much of a stimulus after all. In other words, lawmakers have left themselves with few options should the country face an economic recession, and the country may not receive a substantive economic benefit in the short term.
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report
July 11, 2018
Federal Tax Cuts in the Bush, Obama, and Trump Years
Since 2000, tax cuts have reduced federal revenue by trillions of dollars and disproportionately benefited well-off households. From 2001 through 2018, significant federal tax changes have reduced revenue by $5.1 trillion, with nearly two-thirds of that flowing to the richest fifth of Americans.
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blog
July 10, 2018
Building on Momentum from Recent Years, 2018 Delivers Strengthened Tax Credits for Workers and Families
Despite some challenging tax policy debates, a number of which hinged on states’ responses to federal conformity, 2018 brought some positive developments for workers and their families. This post updates a mid-session trends piece on this very subject. Here’s what we have been following: