Carl Davis
Carl Davis 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.
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media mention August 23, 2017 The Epoch Times: Trump Targets Amazon Over Sales Tax and Retail Jobs
More than half of items sold on Amazon are coming through third-party retailers, according to a CNBC report. These retailers can benefit from Amazon’s facilities or payment system, but they… -
media mention August 17, 2017 New York Times: Does Amazon Pay Taxes?
“If this was five years ago, the tweet would be making a very compelling point,” said Carl Davis, the research director of the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy.… -
media mention August 11, 2017 New York Times: Questions Emerge Over What Wisconsin Must Give for Foxconn Plant
Mr. Walker, who has made promises of job creation a centerpiece of his two terms in office, has pushed lawmakers to move quickly in approving the bill, which would offer… -
media mention August 11, 2017 AP: School Voucher Programs Raise Questions about Transparency and Accountability
The AAA Scholarship Foundation Inc. which runs programs in Nevada and five other states, says it doesn’t give tax advice but has, when asked, shared an IRS memo on the… -
blog August 9, 2017 It’s a Fact: Voucher Tax Credits Offer Profits for Some “Donors”
In nine states, tax rewards gained by donating to fund private K-12 vouchers are so oversized that “donors” can turn a profit. This is the shocking but true finding of a pair of studies released by ITEP over the last year.
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media mention July 28, 2017 The New York Times: Wisconsin’s Lavish Lure for Foxconn: $3 Billion in Tax Subsidies
Big companies like Foxconn possess leverage to extract concessions from state governments that smaller firms cannot, said Carl Davis, research director at the nonpartisan Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy… -
media mention July 14, 2017 Richmond Times-Dispatch: Legislator Proposes Exempting Poorest Virginia Localities from Some Taxes
Carl Davis, research director at the nonpartisan Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, says state taxes don’t play that large a role in economic development decisions. Companies search for an… -
media mention July 6, 2017 Bloomberg BNA: Private School Tax Credits Transform Charitable Incentive Into Profit Scheme
Public schools are funded by taxpayer dollars. School tuition vouchers allow taxpayer dollars to fund private education by paying for private school tuition. Tuition tax credits work in a similar… -
media mention June 30, 2017 USA Today: Gas Taxes Rise in Seven States As Travelers Hit the Road for July 4 Holiday
The urge to hit the road comes as the national average gas price is 4 cents per gallon cheaper than at the same time last year, at $2.28 per gallon,… -
blog June 29, 2017 CBO Just Shot Down Trump’s Economic Forecast
Last month, the Trump Administration released a budget proposal that relies on unrealistic projections of economic growth to create the illusion that it will balance the budget by 2027. By making the federal budget outlook appear more favorable than it actually is, the administration is seeking to bolster its case for enacting a multi-trillion-dollar tax cut. Fortunately, Congress has its own independent forecaster that just chimed in with a more rational assessment of the economy.
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report June 29, 2017 Trump Budget Uses Unrealistic Economic Forecast to Tee Up Tax Cuts
The Trump Administration recently released its proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2018. The administration claims that its proposals would reduce the deficit in nearly every year over the next decade before eventually achieving a balanced budget in 2027, but the assumptions it uses to reach this conclusion are deeply flawed. This report explains these flaws and their consequences for the debate over major federal tax changes.
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blog June 28, 2017 Gas Taxes Will Rise in 7 States to Fund Transportation Improvements
Summer gas prices are at their lowest level in twelve years, which makes right now a sensible time to ask drivers to pay a little more toward improving the transportation infrastructure they use every day. Seven states will be doing this on Saturday, July 1 when they raise their gasoline tax rates. At the same time, two states will be implementing small gas tax rate cuts.
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brief June 28, 2017 How Long Has It Been Since Your State Raised Its Gas Tax?
Many state governments are struggling to repair and expand their transportation infrastructure because they are attempting to cover the rising cost of asphalt, machinery, and other construction materials with fixed-rate gasoline taxes that are rarely increased.
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media mention June 26, 2017 Scripps News Service: Money Diverted from Public Schools?
All the programs basically work this way: Individuals and businesses make cash or stock donations to scholarship granting organizations. The organizations award scholarships to qualifying families with K-12 students, primarily… -
blog June 22, 2017 Explaining our Analysis of Washington State’s Highly Regressive Tax Code
Supporters of creating a local personal income tax in Seattle are rightly concerned about the lopsided nature of their state’s tax code. In a 50-state study titled Who Pays?, produced using our microsimulation tax model, we found that Washington State’s tax system is the most regressive in the nation.
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media mention May 20, 2017 NPR: Leaked Education Budget Has Big Cuts
A bill now in Congress would expand tax-credit scholarships nationwide, creating a dollar-for-dollar federal tax credit for individuals and corporations. That could “undermine public education,” according to a new report… -
media mention May 17, 2017 New York Times: In Some States, Donating to Private Schools Can Earn You a Profit
AASA and the liberal-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy examined programs in 17 states that send more than $1 billion a year to private schools via tuition tax credits,… -
blog May 17, 2017 Investors and Corporations Would Profit from a Federal Private School Voucher Tax Credit
A new report by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) and AASA, the School Superintendents Association, details how tax subsidies that funnel money toward private schools are being… -
report May 17, 2017 Public Loss Private Gain: How School Voucher Tax Shelters Undermine Public Education
One of the most important functions of government is to maintain a high-quality public education system. In many states, however, this objective is being undermined by tax policies that redirect public dollars for K-12 education toward private schools.
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blog May 10, 2017 Gas Taxes Increases Continue to Advance in the States
This post was updated July 12, 2017 to reflect recent gas tax increases in Oregon and West Virginia.
As expected, 2017 has brought a flurry of action relating to state gasoline taxes. As of this writing, eight states (California, Indiana, Montana, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, and West Virginia) have enacted gas tax increases this year, bringing the total number of states that have raised or reformed their gas taxes to 26 since 2013. -
media mention May 7, 2017 Governing: Raising the Gas Tax Is No Longer Taboo in Many States
Already this year, governors in California, Indiana and Tennessee signed laws to raise fuel taxes, meaning a total of 22 states have passed laws imposing higher gas taxes in the… -
media mention May 1, 2017 Bloomberg: Trump Study of Gas Tax Could Run Afoul of GOP, Rural Voters
Voters in rural areas overwhelmingly chose Trump over Democrat Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election, and a higher gas tax also may indeed affect those areas disproportionately, said Carl… -
blog April 25, 2017 Income Tax Offers Best Bang for the Buck in Alaska
Earlier this month the Alaska House of Representatives voted 22-17 in favor of implementing a personal income tax for the first time in over 35 years. Gov. Bill Walker praised… -
report April 24, 2017 Comparing the Distributional Impact of Revenue Options in Alaska
Alaska is facing a significant budget gap because of a sharp decline in the oil tax and royalty revenue that has traditionally been relied upon to fund government. This report examines five approaches for replacing some of the oil revenue that is no longer available: enacting a broad personal income tax, state sales tax, payroll tax, investment income tax, or cutting the Permanent Fund Dividend (PFD). Any of the options examined in this report could make a meaningful contribution toward closing Alaska’s budget gap. To allow for comparisons across options, this report examines policy changes designed to generate $500 million annually. This amount would be insufficient to close Alaska’s $3 billion budget gap, but any of these options could be modified to raise additional revenue, or could be incorporated into a larger package of changes designed to close the gap.
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media mention April 11, 2017 The Fiscal Times: Tax-Free Shopping on Amazon Is Over
As recently as 2011, Amazon was collecting sales tax in just five states, home to 11 percent of the country’s population, according to Carl Davis of the Institute on Taxation and Economic…