• 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.

  • ITEP Work in Action  July 15, 2018

    American Federation of Teachers: A Decade of Neglect--Public Education Funding in the Aftermath of the Great Recession

    “A Decade of Neglect: Public Education Funding in the Aftermath of the Great Recession,” details the devastating impact on schools, classrooms and students when states choose to pursue an austerity agenda in the false belief that tax cuts will pay for themselves.

  • press release  July 12, 2018

    A Practical Case Against Sales Tax Holidays

    The lack of investment in public school systems is a problem in jurisdictions throughout the country. So, at this time of year when many states across the country are temporarily suspending sales taxes to provide a break to taxpayers who have to purchase back-to-school supplies, it’s worth examining whether this is the most effective use of resources.

  • 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.

  • brief  July 12, 2018

    Sales Tax Holidays: An Ineffective Alternative to Real Sales Tax Reform

    Note: This policy brief was updated to reflect Louisiana’s cancellation of its August back-to-school holiday for 2018. Read this report in PDF. Overview Sales taxes are…
  • 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.

  • press release  July 11, 2018

    65 Percent of Federal Tax Cuts Since 2000 Have Gone to Richest 20 Percent

    Since 2000, Congress has passed several rounds of tax cuts that have increased the federal deficit by nearly $6 trillion and disproportionately benefited the top 20 percent of households, which received nearly two-thirds (65 percent) of the value of all tax changes.

  • 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.

  • 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:

  • blog  July 10, 2018

    State Rundown 7/10: Budget Brinksmanship and Ballot Battles

    New Jersey avoided a second consecutive shutdown and proved that even against staunch opposition, progressive solutions to states’ fiscal issues are attainable, and Arizona voters will likely have a chance to solve their education funding crisis in a similar way. Budget and tax debates remain to be resolved, however, in Maine and Massachusetts. Meanwhile, voters are gaining a clearer picture of what questions they will be asked on ballots this fall as signature drives conclude in several states.