Publications By Author
Author:
Rueben, Kim
Tax Stimulus Report Card: Conference Bill (Research Report)
Author(s):
Rosanne Altshuler , Leonard E. Burman , Howard Gleckman , Dan Halperin , Benjamin H. Harris , Elaine Maag , Kim Rueben , Eric Toder , Roberton Williams
This report card evaluates the provisions of the Finance and Ways & Means Committees' conference tax stimulus bill (the "American Recovery and Reinvestment Tax Act of 2009"). The evaluation is preliminary and does not include all of the provisions in the bill most notably we omit provisions related to state and local debt and recovery zone credits. TPC will update the report card if significant changes occur before Congress passes the bill.
Published: 02/13/09
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Tax Stimulus Report Card: Senate Finance Committee (Research Report)
Author(s):
Rosanne Altshuler , Leonard E. Burman , Howard Gleckman , Dan Halperin , Benjamin H. Harris , Elaine Maag , Kim Rueben , Eric Toder , Roberton Williams
The Tax Policy Center has graded the key tax provisions of the pending Senate stimulus bill (the "American Recovery and Reinvestment Tax Plan of 2009"). Our grades, which rely on the bill's legislative language, focus on how well these measures would boost the economy in the short run. Accompanying write-ups describe current law, the proposed change, and the short- and long-term effects on the budget, the economy, fairness and tax complexity. We will update the report card as we learn more about the provisions and as the stimulus bill moves through Congress.
Published: 01/29/09
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Racial Disparities in Education Finance: Going Beyond Equal Revenues (Discussion Papers/Tax Policy Center)
Author(s):
Sheila Murray , Kim Rueben
Education is a key pathway out of poverty, yet schools that primarily serve minority students often fail to provide the educational opportunities available in predominantly white schools. A series of state court cases has addressed one cause of that disparity, the dramatic funding differences that result from reliance on local property taxes to fund schools. This paper examines the success of court-mandated solutions in equalizing spending per pupil across districts serving minority and white students. However, we show that there remains much disparity in other measures of educational quality and outcomes.
Published: 11/03/08
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Sales Tax Holidays (Article/Tax Facts)
Author(s):
Carol Rosenberg , Kim Rueben
For the past 11 years, a growing number of states have held sales tax holidays, during which they exempt certain items from state - and often local - sales tax for a few days. Sixteen states and the District of Columbia have scheduled 25 tax holidays in 2008, most of which occurred in August. Holidays most frequently exempt clothing and school supplies, but some exempt computers, energy-efficient appliances, or hurricane preparedness items..
Published: 10/16/08
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State and Local Revenues (Article/Tax Facts)
Author(s):
Kim Rueben , Carol Rosenberg
State and local revenues have been relatively stable over the last 30 years, growing from 13.5 percent of GDP in 1972 to 16.3 percent in 2005. However, as shown in the table, the composition of revenues has changed, with property taxes declining from 25.6 percent of revenues to only 16.6 percent. Much of this decline occurred in the 1970s.
Published: 04/14/08
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Financing Health Insurance Coverage: California's Revenue Structure and Options (Occasional Paper)
Author(s):
Tracy Gordon , Kim Rueben
California's health care reform effort may have been one of the first casualties of the national economic downturn. Yet the conditions that gave rise to the initiative did not disappear when the plan failed, and other states are pushing ahead with proposals to expand health coverage. So it remains useful to reflect on the California experience. In particular, it will be helpful to understand the proposed funding sources, how they would have interacted with California's revenue system, and what alternative funding streams might have withstood the politics of reform. In this policy brief, we analyze the options for financing expanded health insurance coverage in California and offer our own preferred solution in light of the state's fiscal and political constraints.
Published: 03/07/08
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State Education Spending: Current Pressures and Future Trends (Occasional Paper)
Author(s):
Sheila Murray , Kim Rueben , Carol Rosenberg
Education expenditures are one of the largest spending areas for state and local governments, and per–pupil expenditures have been growing over time. We examine trends in state aid for education and overall education spending and decompose the existing drivers behind growing state costs. We then explore how predicted future demographic trends will affect education spending levels, as the percent of the population that is of school age falls. We conclude that there will continue to be a large state role in education funding, but demographic changes may lead to reduced political support for schools in the future.
Published: 01/23/08
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Navigating State and Local Finances (Article)
Author(s):
Susan Kellam , Kim Rueben , Therese J. McGuire
This article summarizes a March 2007 TPC-Northwestern conference examining state and local finances. Reprinted from Lincoln Institute of Land Policy Land Lines October 2007 issue.
Published: 09/28/07
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SCHIP: Is Increasing the Tobacco Tax To Expand Coverage a Good Idea? (Blog Posting)
Author(s):
Leonard E. Burman , Kim Rueben , Genevieve M. Kenney
The original state children's health insurance program (SCHIP) was financed by an increase in the federal excise tax on cigarettes. President Bush has promised to veto legislation passed by the House to renew and expand SCHIP and increase the federal tax to 84 cents per pack because it "clearly favors government-run health care over private health insurance," but he also objects to the financing method, which he calls "a massive, regressive tax increase." While the president is correct that tobacco excise taxes are regressive, the package as a whole benefits low-income families with children and is, on balance, progressive. Published on HealthAffairs.org.
Published: 09/12/07
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Lower Taxes and Economic Growth: Response to a Flawed Analysis (Research Report)
Author(s):
Kim Rueben , Iris Lav
When the Speaker and other leaders of Florida's House of Representatives released their plan to roll back property taxes and place a tight growth limit on state and local revenues, they included a report in their release by the firm Arduin, Laffer and Moore that claims lower taxes will lead to higher economic growth. We examine and point out the flaws in this analysis and show the authors' fundamental result is due to how they constructed their data and an elementary statistical mistake.
Published: 06/11/07
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