Recent Work
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ITEP Podcast on Maine Voters’ Rejection of Tax Reform – download audio (.mp3)
June 15, 2010 • By Matthew Gardner
Download the MP3
Pending Georgia Tax Changes Would Redistribute Income From the Poorest Families to the Rich
April 22, 2010 • By Meg Wiehe
In the 2010 legislative session, Georgia lawmakers have ratified, or are poised to ratify, a set of tax changes which would dramatically reshape the fairness of the state’s tax system. A new ITEP analysis shows that these changes would increase the taxes paid by the poorest ninety five percent of Georgians, while cutting taxes for […]
Massey Pays One-Sixth of 35% Federal Tax Rate, Little in State Income Tax
April 15, 2010 • By Matthew Gardner
A new analysis shows that Massey Energy, which owned the Upper Big Branch mine where 29 West Virginia miners were killed last week, paid an average of 5.6 percent of its profits in federal income taxes over the last three years—despite having large profits in each year. This is less than one-sixth of the statutory […]
Leaving Money on the Table: “Federal Offset” Provides Incentive for States to Rely on Progressive Income Taxes
April 10, 2010 • By ITEP Staff
Seven states—Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming—have chosen to make up for the lack of an income tax by increasing their reliance on general sales taxes.1 The result is an “upside down” state tax system, which imposes higher effective tax rates on middle- and low-income families than on the best-off taxpayers. But […]
Last week, an Alabama legislative committee approved a bill, House Bill 1, that would take an important step towards making one of the most unfair tax systems in the nation somewhat less unfair. Some opponents of the bill have characterized it as a “redistribution of wealth” from the best-off families to low-income taxpayers. However, these […]
Maryland’s Millionaire Migration Debate: Understanding the Relevance of the New Jersey Migration Studies
March 25, 2010 • By ITEP Staff
As the debate over extending the Maryland “millionaires’ tax” continues, numerous lawmakers and advocates have recently begun to look toward New Jersey’s experience with its own “halfmillionaires’ tax” to help inform their understanding of the issues at work. In particular, two studies of New Jersey’s migration patterns—one from Boston College and one from Princeton University—have […]
Proposed Repeal of Refundable Low Income Credit Would Hurt the Poorest Georgians
March 25, 2010 • By ITEP Staff
Earlier this week, the tax writing committee in the Georgia House of Representatives quietly approved a bill, HB 1219, that would increase Georgia taxes by about $20 million a year by paring back a tax credit that only affects the very poorest Georgians. The bill’s proponents have repeatedly implied that the beneficiaries of the existing […]
ITEP’s Testimony Before the MD House Ways & Means Committee on Preserving Maryland’s “Millionaires’ Tax”
March 23, 2010 • By ITEP Staff
My testimony today focuses on Senate Bill 913, which would temporarily extend, through 2014, the “millionaires’ tax” that is currently scheduled to expire at the end of 2010. This testimony emphasizes that the “millionaires’ tax” makes Maryland’s tax system at least somewhat less unfair than it otherwise would be; that claims about the negative impact […]
My testimony today focuses on one bill introduced in the Missouri House of Representatives: HB 2034, which would reform the state’s individual income tax structure. My testimony will discuss the impact of this bill on the yield and fairness of Missouri’s income tax. HB 2034 would raise over a billion dollars a year to fund […]
ITEP’s Testimony Before the MD Senate Budget and Tax Committee on Preserving Maryland’s “Millionaires’ Tax”
March 11, 2010 • By ITEP Staff
My testimony today focuses on Senate Bill 913, which would temporarily extend, through 2014, the “millionaires’ tax” that is currently scheduled to expire at the end of 2010. This testimony emphasizes that the “millionaires’ tax” makes Maryland’s tax system at least somewhat less unfair than it otherwise would be; that claims about the negative impact […]
Media outlets are reporting that leaders in the New Mexico legislature reached a tentative agreement in the days leading up to this week’s special legislative session that would impose over $220 million a year in new Gross Receipts Taxes (GRT) and cigarette taxes. Reports also indicate that the agreement does not include any provisions to […]
In a special legislative session starting March 1, the New Mexico Legislature will consider a variety of revenue-raising options to close the state’s budget deficit. Some of the options under consideration—especially those approved by the state Senate earlier this year—would fall much more heavily on low- and middle-income families than on the best-off New Mexicans. […]
Determining the Statewide Sales Tax Rate Under SJR 29 and HJR 56
February 9, 2010 • By ITEP Staff
Senate Joint Resolution 29 and House Joint Resolution 56 are currently being debated in the Missouri Legislature. The proposals would place a constitutional amendment on the ballot to dramatically change the state’s revenue structure by eliminating the individual income and corporate income/franchise taxes and replacing them with a greatly expanded sales tax. The new statewide […]
In evaluating SJR 29, policymakers should have a clear understanding of how broad the tax base could actually be under such a plan, what the tax rate would actually have to be in order to make the plan revenue-neutral overall, and how the plan overall would affect Missourians at different income levels. My testimony presents […]
In 2008, to compensate for the anticipated loss of revenue due to the repeal of a law subjecting the provision of computer services to the state’s sales tax, Maryland enacted a temporary change in its income tax. That change, which is in effect only through the end of this year, created a new top income […]
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