Spending In Disguise

Donald Marron (June 27, 2011) - The argument over how to close America’s budget gap is often dominated — sometimes debilitated — by sharp disagreements about how much should come from spending cuts and how much from tax increases. But that division can be misleading. A great deal of government spending is hidden in the federal tax code in the form of deductions, credits, and other preferences — preferences that seem like they let taxpayers keep their own money, but are actually spending in disguise. Those preferences complicate the code and often needlessly distort the decisions of businesses and families. The magnitude of these preferences raises the possibility of a dramatic reform of the tax code — making it simpler, fairer, and more pro-growth — that would amount to simultaneously cutting spending and increasing government revenue, without raising tax rates.

Such a reform would not eliminate the need for serious spending cuts, of course, nor would it take tax increases off the table. But it could dramatically improve the government's fiscal outlook and make the task of budget negotiators far easier. It will only be possible, however, if we clearly understand how spending is hidden in the tax code and what reformers might do about it — if we see that tax policy and spending policy are not always as distinct as we might think. End of excerpt.

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