Newsletter Archive

April 24, 2006

See below for the latest from the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center:

• The Colorado Revenue Limit: The Economic Effects of TABOR
  Kim Rueben and Therese J. McGuire
  April 6, 2006
• New Estimates of the Budget Outlook: Plus Ça Change, Plus C'est la Même Chose
  Alan J. Auerbach, William G. Gale and Peter Orszag
  April 17, 2006
• Good Reasons for Taxes
  Diane Lim Rogers
  April 16, 2006

The Colorado Revenue Limit: The Economic Effects of TABOR
Kim Rueben and Therese J. McGuire
April 6, 2006

Twenty-eight states have some state spending or revenue limit in place. In November 1992, Colorado voters passed the most restrictive measure yet, the Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR), the economic effects of which have been hotly debated in recent years. The authors examine the history of TABOR and find that there is little evidence that TABOR significantly boosted Colorado's economy.

New Estimates of the Budget Outlook: Plus Ça Change, Plus C'est la Même Chose
Alan J. Auerbach, William G. Gale and Peter Orszag
April 17, 2006

Despite substantial attention given to fiscal policy concerns in recent years, the federal government's fiscal status has continued to deteriorate, with the enactment of tax cuts, a massive new Medicare entitlement, increased spending on defense and homeland security, and related economic developments. This paper provides new estimates of the nation's fiscal status over both the 10-year and long-term horizon, based on the most recent (January 2006) Congressional Budget Office official budget figures (CBO 2006). Our general conclusions are not surprising: under plausible assumptions, the nation faces significant short- and medium-term deficits and massive long-term shortfalls. Dealing with these problems will require spending cuts or tax increases that are far beyond the scale of anything currently considered politically palatable.

Good Reasons for Taxes
Diane Lim Rogers
April 16, 2006

With tax-filing upon us, many people, ordinary citizens and politicians alike, complain of how high Americans' tax burdens are. President Bush recently used his radio address to say that, as Americans are finishing up their tax returns, they should be reminded of the need to make the 2001-03 tax cuts permanent. Left unsaid, though, is that even with our imperfect tax system, the revenues provided by taxes strengthen, not weaken, our nation's economy.

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