Publications by Topic
Topic: Savings, Wealth and Retirement
Automatic Enrollment in IRAs: Costs and Benefits (Article/Tax Facts)
Author(s):
Benjamin H. Harris , Rachel M. Johnson
To encourage better retirement saving, President Obama recently proposed policies that would require firms without retirement savings plans to automatically enroll their workers in IRAs. In addition, the president proposed an expansion of the Saver's Credit to be fully refundable and available to middle-income taxpayers. This report estimates the revenue costs and distributional effects of the president's proposals.
Published: 08/31/09
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Distributional Effects of Tax Expenditures (Research Report)
Author(s):
Benjamin H. Harris , Katherine Lim , Eric Toder
The largest tax preferences for housing, health care, and retirement saving reduce federal revenues by about 3 percent of GDP. They raise after-tax income proportionally more for higher income groups than lower income groups, but raise income proportionately less for those at the very top. The net distributional effects depend on how these tax preferences are financed. If paid for with higher marginal tax rates, they benefit upper-middle income taxpayers at the expense of both lower-income and the highest-income taxpayers, but if paid for by lower per-capita spending, all high-income groups gain and all low-income groups lose.
Published: 07/21/09
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Decoding the U.S. Corporate Tax (Audio / Video Files)
Author(s):
The Tax Policy Center
Significant reform of the U.S. tax system must include changes in the complex and inefficient way we tax corporations. What direction should reform take? Many have embraced the idea of integrating the corporate and individual tax. But in his Urban Institute Press book, Decoding the U.S. Corporate Tax, Daniel Shaviro argues that there are more promising directions for 21st century corporate tax reform. He considers significantly lowering the corporate rate, embracing international tax simplification, and requiring partial conformity between tax accounting and financial income. Panelists will debate these provocative ideas in a lively discussion of Shaviro’s prescriptions for corporate tax reform.
Published: 03/11/09
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Back from the Grave: Revenue and Distributional Effects of Reforming the Federal Estate Tax (Research Report)
Author(s):
Leonard E. Burman , Katherine Lim , Jeff Rohaly
In this paper we review the current wealth transfer tax rules and the changes introduced in 2001. We offer an overview of the methodology underlying the TPC's estate tax model and then use the model to estimate the number of estate tax filers, taxable returns, and the distribution of burden under current law. Finally, we investigate the revenue and distributional effects of several proposals to reform the estate tax, including those put forth by the presidential candidates.
Published: 10/20/08
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Interview with Dr. Eric Toder (Interview)
Author(s):
Eric Toder
In this interview for the American Bar Association Taxation Section News Quarterly, Eric Toder discusses the relationship between the Social Security trust fund account surplus and budget deficits, prospects for future tax reform, reforms of corporate taxation, and the possible future role of consumption taxes in the federal tax code.
Published: 08/08/08
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A Preliminary Analysis of the 2008 Presidential Candidates' Tax Plans (Summary) (Summary)
Author(s):
The Tax Policy Center
Tax and fiscal policy will loom large in the next president's domestic policy agenda. Nearly all of the tax cuts enacted since 2001 expire at the end of 2010 and the individual alternative minimum tax (AMT) threatens to ensnare tens of millions of Americans. While a permanent fix palatable to both political parties has proven elusive, both candidates have proposed major tax changes. This summary outlines our analysis of the 2008 presidential candidates' tax plans. The full length report is also available.
Published: 06/24/08
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A Preliminary Analysis of the 2008 Presidential Candidates' Tax Plans (Full Report) (Research Report)
Author(s):
The Tax Policy Center
Tax and fiscal policy will loom large in the next president's domestic policy agenda. Nearly all of the tax cuts enacted since 2001 expire at the end of 2010 and the individual alternative minimum tax (AMT) threatens to ensnare tens of millions of Americans. While a permanent fix palatable to both political parties has proven elusive, both candidates have proposed major tax changes. This report describes how we performed our modeling and analysis, outlines the major tax proposals, and discusses the implications of their policies for the revenue raised, taxpayer economic activity, and the distribution of the tax burden.
Published: 06/20/08
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The Distribution of Federal Taxes, 2008-11 (Research Report)
Author(s):
Jeff Rohaly
Overall, the federal tax system is highly progressive. On average, households with higher incomes pay taxes that are a larger share of their income. The tax cuts passed since 2001 have reduced progressivity with the notable exception of the 2008 stimulus package. Almost all provisions of the tax cuts are set to expire by the end of 2010. Barring legislative action, effective tax rates will rise across the income spectrum in 2011 with the largest increases in the upper income classes. This paper summarizes the Tax Policy Center's latest estimates of the distribution of federal taxes for 2008 through 2011.
Published: 06/11/08
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How the Income Tax Treatment of Saving and Social Security Benefits May Affect Boomers' Retirement Incomes (Series/The Retirement Project Occasional Papers)
Author(s):
Barbara Butrica , Karen E. Smith , Eric Toder
Income tax provisions affect the buildup of retirement assets during workers' careers and after-tax income following retirement. This paper uses the Urban Institute's DYNASIM model to simulate how potential changes in the tax treatment of retirement saving, Social Security benefits, and income from assets outside retirement accounts may affect boomers' retirement incomes. Changes in the income thresholds for taxing Social Security benefits have the largest impact on middle-income boomers, while changes in contribution limits for retirement saving plans and tax rates on capital gains and dividends have the largest impact on the highest-income boomers.
Published: 03/14/08
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Taxpayer Eligibility for IRAs (Article/Tax Facts)
Author(s):
Benjamin H. Harris , Christopher Geissler
The tax code limits the extent to which individuals may take advantage of the tax benefits associated with traditional and Roth IRAs. The only eligibility criteria for contributing to a Roth IRA are income and filing status. In contrast, eligibility for deducting contributions to a traditional IRA depends on those factors as well as on whether the taxpayer and the taxpayer’s spouse participate in an employer-provided pension. Taxpayers are subject to an assortment of phaseout ranges based on those criteria.
Published: 03/07/08
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