Tax Reform and Fairness for Families
Presentation to the President's Advisory Panel on Tax Reform New Orleans, LA
C. Eugene Steuerle
Published: March 23, 2005 || Availability: 
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Note: This testimony is available in its entirety in the Portable Document Format (PDF).
Outline
- Tax system affects almost every area of family's life
- Many tax subsidies are complex, unfair, inefficient, non-transparent, and corrupting
- IRS does NOT monitor subsidies' effectiveness
- Much spending is hidden in taxation
- Much taxation is hidden in spending
- Tax reform cannot avoid addressing these "policies"
- True tax reform identifies who is going to pay
Pervasiveness of Tax Subsidies
- Child-related subsidies (EITC larger than welfare)
- Housing tax subsidies(larger than HUD budget)
- Charitable incentives
- Subsidies for states/localities
- Health tax subsidies (for workers, larger than any direct spending program)
- Retirement/saving incentives (revenue loss greater than total personal saving)
- Higher education incentives
- Business subsidies (that differentiate among families
by source of income, not ability to pay)
Note: This testimony is available in its entirety in the Portable Document Format (PDF).
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