In this country, wealthier than any other and wealthier than we’ve ever been, we can create a smarter, more equitable tax code that better taxes those most able to pay.
Amy Hanauer
Amy Hanauer joined ITEP in 2020, bringing nearly 30 years of experience working to create economic policy that advances social justice. As executive director of both ITEP and Citizens for Tax Justice (CTJ), Amy provides vision and leadership to promote fair and equitable state and national tax policy.
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blog January 25, 2022 Why Tax Reform Should Remain on the Table
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news release November 19, 2021 House Passage of Build Back Better Bill Moves America’s Tax Code in the Right Direction
The Build Back Better plan that the House passed today will transform the country and make our tax code more progressive, more equitable and better able to pay for crucial priorities.
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news release November 15, 2021 ITEP Statement on President Biden Signing the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
America does better when we invest in our people, our places and our planet. The infrastructure bill that President Biden signed today will restore and strengthen our physical infrastructure, making repairs and improvements that are long overdue. Now Congress needs to take the next step and pass legislation that taxes wealthy people and corporations to pay for our care and climate infrastructure.
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blog October 28, 2021 Tax Provisions in the White House Build Back Better Framework: The Good and Bad
The tax provisions in the Build Back Better framework released by the White House today include enormously helpful reforms but also some disappointments. The good news is that the plan would raise nearly $2 trillion over a decade from those who can afford to pay–the richest Americans and large, profitable corporations. The bad news is that some fundamental problems with our tax code would remain unaddressed.
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blog October 27, 2021 A Surprising Idea from the Era of Reaganomics
President Reagan is lionized by many for cutting taxes and government. But the story is more complicated. Reagan knee-capped regulation and much domestic spending, and early in his administration he… -
news release September 13, 2021 ITEP: House Ways and Means Revenue Proposals Are a Promising Start, Leave Some Crucial Work Undone
Earlier this year, the Biden administration put forth a transformative tax proposal that would raise significant revenue, reduce corporate tax avoidance, and substantially increase taxes paid by the wealthiest individuals. The Ways and Means Committee has kept some of these important reforms but has diluted others in ways that would leave some of the work of tax reform undone.
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news release August 5, 2021 ITEP Statement on AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka’s Death
Following is a statement from Amy Hanauer, executive director of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, regarding the death of AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka: “The board and staff of… -
news release June 24, 2021 ITEP: Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal Must Be Accompanied by Bolder Legislation
Following is a statement by Amy Hanauer, executive director of ITEP, regarding the bipartisan deal announced today by senators and the White House. “While the bipartisan infrastructure deal announced today… -
news release June 8, 2021 ITEP: ProPublica’s Expose on Billionaires’ Taxes Is Another Wake-up Call
The explosive ProPublica report released today confirmed what we have known for quite some time: the wealthy and powerful play by a different set of rules than the rest of us. Following is a statement by Amy Hanauer, executive director of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, regarding the report: “ProPublica’s reporting today on the details of how 25 billionaires pay little to nothing in federal tax relative to their incomes is a wakeup call: the nation needs tax reform that will impart some balance to our tax system.”
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news release May 28, 2021 Biden’s Budget Signals the End of Trickle-Down Economics Era
President Joe Biden’s 2022 budget proposal released today signals a commitment to transformational policy solutions that not only invest in people and communities but also ensure corporations and rich people contribute more in taxes to support the economy that makes their wealth and profits possible, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) said today.
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news release April 28, 2021 American Families Plan Proposes Transformational Investments and More Equitable Tax Reform
Following is a statement by Amy Hanauer, executive director of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, regarding President Biden’s remarks on the American Families Plan. “Longstanding inequities, deepened by… -
blog April 27, 2021 Alvin Schorr and the Policy Relay Race
Sometimes a good idea takes a while. Alvin Schorr, who would have turned 100 this month, helped draft a 1972 bill “to provide for a system of children’s allowances.” He continued to push (in a 1977 congressional testimony and in a 1983 New York Times op-ed) for a refundable tax credit for all families and a children’s allowance, among other laudable ideas. A half-century later, these ideas—which many others have championed—are becoming reality.
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April 8, 2021 The High Cost of Corporate Tax Avoidance (Webinar)
When communities thrive, so do corporations. But when profitable corporations build their empires by exploiting the tax code, it is workers, the environment and our communities—not CEOs or shareholders—that are harmed. Amazon posted its highest U.S. profit ever for 2020, an unprecedented year defined by a pandemic. Yet the company sheltered more than half its profits from corporate taxes—legally. While the company may be one of the most recognizable tax avoiders, it’s not an outlier.
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report April 2, 2021 Corporate Tax Reform in the Wake of the Pandemic
Read as PDF Note: This report is adapted from written testimony submitted by Amy Hanauer before testifying in person to the Senate Budget Committee on March 25, 2021. In 2020,… -
blog March 25, 2021 Here Are Some Truths About Corporate Tax Avoidance
We all need the things that the public sector provides. When corporate taxes go unpaid, the American people have less for the things that would help our communities. That means less repair of our failing infrastructure, less investment in greening our economy, less funding to help young people attend college.
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March 25, 2021 Testimony to Senate Budget Committee on Ending a Rigged Tax Code: The Need To Make the Wealthiest People and Largest Corporations Pay their Fair Share of Taxes
Following is testimony of ITEP Executive Director Amy Hanauer before the Senate Budget Committee to consider “Ending a Rigged Tax Code: The Need To Make the Wealthiest People and Largest… -
news release March 10, 2021 American Rescue Plan Uses Government Muscle to Tackle Big Economic Problems
Media contact Following is a statement by Amy Hanauer, executive director of The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, regarding the American Rescue Plan, which has cleared both houses of… -
news release March 2, 2021 ITEP: Senate Should Pass Rescue Plan without Delay
Senators and representatives can look to recent history—the 2007-2009 recession—for lessons on how to best address the current economic crisis. If we do too little, the economy will stay weak much longer, hurting all of us.
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blog February 5, 2021 Faulty Fact Check on Tax Breaks for the Rich and Corporations
When it comes to tax policy, the details are complicated, but the story is often simple. For example, President Trump’s so-called Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) disproportionately benefits the rich. This is not controversial. Yet some opinion makers with large megaphones get lost in the details and come to conclusions that only create more confusion.
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blog February 4, 2021 Corporations Avoid Taxes in a Pandemic
The public and the Biden administration say corporations should contribute to the public infrastructure that lets them earn so much. We agree. It’s the least we can ask, in a pandemic and at all other times too.
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news release January 20, 2021 ITEP Statement on President Biden’s Inauguration: Ready for Change
Media contact Following is a statement by Amy Hanauer, executive director of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, regarding President Biden’s inauguration. “Today, we pause to recognize President Joe… -
blog January 15, 2021 Happy Double Take: A President Who Takes Economic Challenges Seriously
After a solid year of federal policy doing too little to combat staggering job loss, spiking poverty, a raging pandemic and nearly 400,000 COVID deaths, we are ready for a leader who wants to hunker down and get to work on behalf of the people. So we did a happy double take when President-elect Joe Biden outlined his economic plan last night.
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news release January 14, 2021 ITEP: Biden’s American Rescue Plan Is the Start We Need to Right the Economy
Following is a statement by Amy Hanauer, executive director of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, regarding President-elect Biden’s economic package released today. “President-elect Biden’s plan offers sound solutions… -
map January 8, 2021 New Leadership Should Seize Tax Justice Mandate; Cash Payments Offer On-ramp
With the victory of Senators-elect Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff in Georgia, Democrats now control all three branches of government. New leaders should seize this moment to create a tax code that does much more to reduce inequality and to resource long-overdue investments in climate, health, education and other essentials. Most immediately, the historic election shifts power, making it easier to deliver on the promise to increase the recently enacted $600 cash payments to $2,000 per person.
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news release December 21, 2020 COVID Relief Bill Will Help Families Now; Bigger, Bolder Package Needed in 2021
Following is a statement from Amy Hanauer, executive director of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, regarding the COVID-19 relief deal reached Sunday night.