Today marks Day 4 of the Arizona teachers’ walkout. After decades of tax cuts and underfunding of public education, education advocates are now driving the debate and urging lawmakers to act. Their newest proposal would raise taxes on incomes above half a million dollars for married couples, or above $250,000 for single taxpayers—that is, the same wealthy taxpayers that just received a generous tax cuts under last year’s federal tax overhaul.
Arizona
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blog May 1, 2018 Newly Unveiled Ballot Initiative Aims to Tax Arizona’s Top 1 Percent to Fund Education
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December 16, 2017 How the Final GOP-Trump Tax Bill Would Affect Arizona Residents’ Federal Taxes
The final tax bill that Republicans in Congress are poised to approve would provide most of its benefits to high-income households and foreign investors while raising taxes on many low-… -
blog December 14, 2017 Private Schools Donors Likely to Win Big from Expanded Loophole in Tax Bill
For years, private schools around the country have been making an unusual pitch to prospective donors: give us your money, and you’ll get so many state and federal tax breaks in return that you may end up turning a profit. Under tax legislation being considered in Congress right now, that pitch is about to become even more persuasive.
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report December 14, 2017 Tax Bill Would Increase Abuse of Charitable Giving Deduction, with Private K-12 Schools as the Biggest Winners
In its rush to pass a major rewrite of the tax code before year’s end, Congress appears likely to enact a “tax reform” that creates, or expands, a significant number of tax loopholes.[1] One such loophole would reward some of the nation’s wealthiest individuals with a strategy for padding their own bank accounts by “donating” to support private K-12 schools. While a similar loophole exists under current law, its size and scope would be dramatically expanded by the legislation working its way through Congress.[2]
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December 6, 2017 How the House and Senate Tax Bills Would Affect Arizona Residents’ Federal Taxes
The House passed its “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” November 16th and the Senate passed its version December 2nd. Both bills would raise taxes on many low- and middle-income families in every state and provide the wealthiest Americans and foreign investors substantial tax cuts, while adding more than $1.4 trillion to the deficit over ten years. The graph below shows that both bills are skewed to the richest 1 percent of Arizona residents.
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ITEP Work in Action November 14, 2017 Arizona Center for Economic Progress: Just Like the House GOP Plan, the Senate GOP Tax Plan Is Another Handout to the Wealthiest Households and Large Corporations
Newly published data shows that the new Senate GOP tax plan isn’t much better than the House GOP tax plan for the middle-class, small businesses, and lower-income Americans. The Institute… -
November 13, 2017 How the Revised Senate Tax Bill Would Affect Arizona Residents’ Federal Taxes
The Senate tax bill released last week would raise taxes on some families while bestowing immense benefits on wealthy Americans and foreign investors. In Arizona, 48 percent of the federal tax cuts would go to the richest 5 percent of residents, and 12 percent of households would face a tax increase, once the bill is fully implemented.
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ITEP Work in Action November 6, 2017 Arizona Center for Economic Progress: With Further Analysis Completed, It’s Time to Call the GOP Tax Plan What it Is: Welfare for the Wealthy
A 50-state analysis of the House tax plan released last week reveals that in Arizona the wealthiest 1% of Arizonans will receive the greatest share of the total tax cut in year… -
November 6, 2017 How the House Tax Proposal Would Affect Arizona Residents’ Federal Taxes
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which was introduced on November 2 in the House of Representatives, includes some provisions that raise taxes and some that cut taxes, so the net effect for any particular family’s federal tax bill depends on their situation. Some of the provisions that benefit the middle class — like lower tax rates, an increased standard deduction, and a $300 tax credit for each adult in a household — are designed to expire or become less generous over time. Some of the provisions that benefit the wealthy, such as the reduction and eventual repeal of the estate tax, become more generous over time. The result is that by 2027, the benefits of the House bill become increasingly generous for the richest one percent compared to other income groups.
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October 4, 2017 GOP-Trump Tax Framework Would Provide Richest One Percent in Arizona with 60.1 Percent of the State’s Tax Cuts
The “tax reform framework” released by the Trump administration and congressional Republican leaders on September 27 would not benefit everyone in Arizona equally. The richest one percent of Arizona residents would receive 60.1 percent of the tax cuts within the state under the framework in 2018. These households are projected to have an income of at least $470,200 next year. The framework would provide them an average tax cut of $59,210 in 2018, which would increase their income by an average of 4.4 percent.
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August 17, 2017 In Arizona 38.6 Percent of Trump’s Proposed Tax Cuts Go to People Making More than $1 Million
A tiny fraction of the Arizona population (0.4 percent) earns more than $1 million annually. But this elite group would receive 38.6 percent of the tax cuts that go to Arizona residents under the tax proposals from the Trump administration. A much larger group, 47.8 percent of the state, earns less than $45,000, but would receive just 4.0 percent of the tax cuts.
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July 20, 2017 Trump Tax Proposals Would Provide Richest One Percent in Arizona with 51 Percent of the State’s Tax Cuts
Earlier this year, the Trump administration released some broadly outlined proposals to overhaul the federal tax code. Households in Arizona would not benefit equally from these proposals. The richest one percent of the state’s taxpayers are projected to make an average income of $1,355,400 in 2018. They would receive 51 percent of the tax cuts that go to Arizona’s residents and would enjoy an average cut of $99,090 in 2018 alone.
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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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ITEP Work in Action January 24, 2017 The Arizona Center for Economic Progress: Questions and Answers About Arizona’s State Budget and Taxes 2017
State budgets and taxes are the foundation for achieving our common priorities that will lead to more quality jobs, a strong economy, and thriving communities. This publication provides information and… -
ITEP Work in Action January 10, 2017 The Arizona Center for Economic Progress: Arizona’s State Budget and Taxes: What Every Arizonan Needs to Know About Growing Our Economy
When all types of state and local taxes are combined—income, sales and property—families with incomes in the bottom fifth pay nearly three times what families in the top 1 percent… -
media mention October 5, 2016 Tucson Weekly: What is ‘The Tax Foundation,’ and Why Does It Rank Arizona 21st in Tax Policies?
“A more liberal-leaning group, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, has a different take on Arizona’s tax structure. It comes close to agreeing with the Tax Foundation on the… -
media mention July 28, 2016 Phoenix Business Journal: Why pay-by-the-mile fees are on the horizon across the country
“The shortfall is dramatic. The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy found that in 2013, the purchasing power of gas tax dollars had declined 22 percent since 1997, plus alternative… -
media mention June 7, 2016 Tucson Weekly: Raising Taxes Is Front Page News (and It’s About Damn Time)
“Anyone making $80,000 or less a year is paying two to three times the tax rate of Arizona’s one percenters. Wealthier people may pay a higher percentage in state income… -
media mention February 26, 2016 The Arizona Republic: Valdez: US can get some easy money from migrants
Want some easy money, America? Give undocumented immigrants a break.That’s right. Drop the nasty rhetoric, and embrace some of the nation’s most maligned residents. It’ll pay off in big… -
ITEP Work in Action October 21, 2015 Children’s Action Alliance: Arizona’s Individual Income Tax
The balance and fairness of any tax system depends on the impact of all the taxes an individual or family pays. State and local sales taxes always take a bigger… -
ITEP Work in Action October 21, 2015 Children’s Action Alliance: Questions and Answers About Arizona’s State Budget and Taxes
State budgets and taxes are tools to reach our common goals for health, education, security and a vibrant, prosperous future. This publication provides information and analysis to help policymakers,… -
report September 17, 2015 Low Tax for Whom?: Arizona is a “Low Tax State” Overall, But Not for Families Living in Poverty
Annual data from the U.S. Census Bureau appears to lend support to Arizona’s reputation as a “low tax state,” ranking it 37th nationally in taxes collected as a share of personal income.1 But focusing on the state’s overall tax revenues has led many observers to overlook the fact that different taxpayers experience Arizona’s tax system very differently. In particular, the poorest 20 percent of Arizona residents pay significantly more of their income (12.5 percent) in state and local taxes than any other group in the state.2 For low-income families, Arizona is far from being a low tax state. In fact, only four states tax their poorest residents more heavily than Arizona.
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media mention July 13, 2015 Cheat Sheet: 10 Worst States in America for Fair Tax Systems
Americans generally believe that higher income households should pay a greater percentage of their incomes in taxes than lower income households. Yet the exact opposite occurs. The Institute on Taxation… -
ITEP Work in Action March 6, 2015 Children’s Action Alliance: HB 2069 – S/E Online TPT/Income Tax Reduction Fact Sheet
HB 2069 shifts taxes from the wealthiest Arizonans to low and middle income taxpayers, attempts to limit options available to future legislatures, and depends on a “best guess” to make…