Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP)

Recent Work

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Yum! Brands’ Recipe for Tax Avoidance: Trump Tax Cuts with a Dash of Malta

the fast-food multinational that owns KFC, Taco Bell, and Pizza Hut reported this week that it made $1 billion of pretax profits in the U.S. last year—and didn’t pay a dime of federal income taxes on those profits.

State-by-State Estimates of the First Year of Trump’s Tax Policies: All But the Richest Americans Face Higher Taxes

As a result of the tax policies approved by President Trump and the Republican majority in Congress, all but the richest Americans are paying higher taxes on average in 2026 than they did last year.

Despite a Supreme Court Victory for Middle-Class Americans, Trump’s Disastrous Tariff Policies Are Not Over

Today the Supreme Court made the right decision in striking down most of the tariffs President Trump has put into motion during his second term.

Live Nation Entertainment Says Trump Tax Law Drove its 2025 Federal Income Tax Bill to Zero

The company paid zero federal income tax in 2025 despite reporting $145 million of U.S. profits.

Trump Administration Provides Biggest Illegal Tax Cuts Yet for Billion-Dollar Corporations

The Treasury Department is unilaterally cutting corporate taxes with regulations that ignore the statute they claim to implement, disregarding the separation of powers between the branches of government that has defined how America works for more than two centuries.

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Property Tax Reforms Can Bring Racial Justice

February 19, 2026 • By Brakeyshia Samms

Property Tax Reforms Can Bring Racial Justice

Homes in Black neighborhoods are more likely to be over-assessed for tax purposes while being undervalued by private appraisers.

It’s Time for States to Jettison Nonsensical FDDEI Deductions

FDDEI deductions should be repealed for policy reasons alone as they do not serve a legitimate purpose at the state level.

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Video: You Are Paying More in Taxes Than Palantir

February 19, 2026 • By Marcus Rojas

Palantir paid $0 federal income tax on  $1.5 billion of U.S. income.

State Rundown 2/19: Necktie (NCTI) Offers a Way Out of a Knotty Situation

State lawmakers are grappling with a range of challenges as their fiscal outlooks deteriorate, federal tax enforcement wanes (after the Trump administration cut the IRS workforce by 25 percent), and a rewritten federal tax code sends states scrambling to decide what changes they might want to make in their own codes.

Palantir Pays Zero Federal Income Tax Despite Explosive Growth, Largely Due to Trump Tax Law

Palantir reported $1.5 billion of U.S. income but paid exactly zero federal income tax in 2025. Despite explosive growth, tax breaks from the Trump tax law helped Palantir avoid paying even a dime of federal income tax on its earnings.

Michigan Ballot Proposal Would Boost Public Education While Creating a Fairer Tax System

A new proposal in Michigan would create a 5-percentage point surcharge on top earners with taxable incomes over $1 million for joint filers and $500,000 for single filers. This would raise about $1.7 billion a year, which would be used for public education priorities.

NCTI is an Important Part of the Federal Corporate Tax. States Should Adopt It Too.

Including NCTI in state corporate tax law is an effective way to neutralize much of the tax avoidance that occurs when multinational companies artificially shift their profits into overseas tax havens.

Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, and Tesla collectively made $315 billion in U.S. profits for 2025 and paid just 4.9% in federal income taxes, avoiding $51 billion in taxes.

State Rundown 2/11: This Valentine’s Day, Conscious Decoupling Is Our Love Language

While some may be excited for a romantic Valentine’s Day this weekend, many state lawmakers are breaking up and decoupling from recent federal tax changes that are poised to leave states with revenue shortfalls – much like a bad date who forgets their wallet and asks you to pick up the tab.

Trump Undermined the Constitution to Give Corporations a $10 Billion Tax Cut

This unilateral corporate tax cut from the Trump administration will cost $10 billion over a decade unless it is reversed.

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