<?xml version="1.0" ?>
<!--  RSS generated by www.taxpolicycenter.org on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 21:00:04 EST -->

<rss version="2.0">


<channel>
    <title>Tax Policy Center: Budget Issues</title>
    <link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org</link>
    <description>Tax Policy Center reports on: Budget Issues - The Tax Policy Center is a joint venture of the Urban Institute and Brookings Institution. The Center is comprised of nationally recognized experts in tax, budget, and social policy who have served at the highest levels of government.</description>
    <language>en-us</language>
    <copyright>Copyright 2012 Tax Policy Center</copyright>
    <docs>http://backend.userland.com/rss</docs>
    <lastBuildDate>Wed, 08 Feb 2012 21:00:04 EST</lastBuildDate>
    <image>
	    <title>Tax Policy Center</title>
	    <url>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/images/TPC_logo_29x29.jpg</url>
		<width>29</width>
		<height>29</height>
	    <link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org</link>
    </image>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Distributional Effects of Individual Income Tax Expenditures: An Update]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Tax expenditures on average raise after-tax incomes more for upper-income than for lower-income taxpayers. As a share of income, special rates for capital gains and dividends and itemized deductions provide the largest benefits for taxpayers in the top 1 percent of the income distribution, exemptions and exclusions benefit taxpayers in upper middle-income groups the most, and refundable credits provide the largest benefits to those in the bottom two quintiles of the distribution. Interactions among provisions make the revenue cost of all tax expenditures about 10 percent larger than the sum of the costs of the separate provisions.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=412495&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Daniel Baneman, Eric Toder)</author>
        <pubDate>Fri, 03 Feb 2012 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/412495-Distribution-of-Tax-Expenditures.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="270405"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Curbing Tax Expenditures]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[This paper takes a broad look at tax expenditures in the context of revenue raising tax reform. It first reviews how tax expenditures have changed over the past 25 years and provides estimates of the distribution of tax savings resulting from tax expenditures today. The paper then examines three approaches for applying across-the-board limits to a selected group of the largest and most widely utilized tax preferences. The three optionsa fixed percentage credit, a cap based on income, and a constant percentage reductioncan all be designed to raise significant revenue for deficit reduction in a progressive manner.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=412493&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Daniel Baneman, Joseph Rosenberg, Eric Toder, Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/412493-Curbing-Tax-Expenditures.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="559757"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Health Reform's Tax on Investment: Facts and Myths]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[To help pay for expanded health insurance coverage, the health reform legislation enacted in 2010 included a new 3.8 percent tax on the net investment income of high-income taxpayers. When it goes into effect in 2013, it will increase the top tax rate on capital gains, dividends, and other investment income, regardless of whether the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts are allowed to expire. Almost all the burden will be borne by taxpayers with extremely high incomes. More than half the burden, for example, falls on taxpayers in the top 0.1 percent of the income distribution.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001585&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001585-TN-health-reform-investment-facts-myths.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="85121"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Using a VAT to Reform the Income Tax]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In 100 Million Unnecessary Returns, Columbia University law professor Michael J. Graetz proposed a sweeping reform of the federal tax system that is intended to simplify the tax system, improve economic incentives, and maintain fairness. The Graetz proposal would remove most current taxpayers from the income tax rolls, reform the corporate income tax, significantly reduce the top individual and corporate rates, and adopt a value-added tax (VAT). This paper describes the Graetz proposal in detail and analyzes its effects on federal revenues, spending and the deficit, the distribution of tax burdens, economic incentives, and tax administrative and compliance costs.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=412489&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Eric Toder, Jim  Nunns, Joseph Rosenberg)</author>
        <pubDate>Fri, 27 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/412489-Using-a-VAT-to-Reform-the-Income-Tax.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="577804"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[America Owes $10 Trillion! No, $50 Trillion! Let Me Explain.]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In a contribution to the Christian Science Monitor, Donald Marron discusses the estimates of America's debt which vary by tens of trillions of dollars, depending on how you count. The bottom line: It's deep but not yet fatal.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901476&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Fri, 27 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Tax Rates on Capital Gains]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Tax rates on capital gains have fluctuated over the past century, sometimes matching the rates for ordinary income but more often substantially below them. The current top gains tax rate is 15 percent, less than half the 35 percent top rate on ordinary income and lower than at any time since the depression. But if Congress does not change the law, the expiration of the Bush-era tax cuts and imposition of taxes associated with the 2010 healthcare legislation will boost the maximum tax rate on gains to 25 percent in 2013.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001583&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 25 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001583-tax-rates-on-cap-gains.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="791198"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Controlling the Deficit: The Debate Continues]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[The report discusses the important budget events of 2011.  It begins with the House Republican budget and the president's response. The very different approaches to health and discretionary spending and tax policy are analyzed in detail. The policy debate continued into the confused debt limit negotiations of July. The Budget Control Act finally emerged. It capped discretionary spending and created a "super committee" that was to propose additional deficit reductions. The committee failed miserably. An automatic across-the-board spending cut is supposed to result from that failure. The report describes its effects on defense and nondefense spending.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=412483&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( John L. Palmer, Rudolph G. Penner)</author>
        <pubDate>Fri, 20 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/412483-controlling-the-deficit.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="623893"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Funding and Investing in Infrastructure]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Funding and investing in infrastructure are not only about finding adequate resources to meet the demands of citizenry, but rather requires understanding of how infrastructure fits into the broader functions of government.  This brief examines the key role of pricing infrastructure projects and how the total cost of a project (including  lifetime maintenance costs) should be included in funding decisions. Current federal and state policies often encourage new building rather  than maintenance and care of existing infrastructure.  The role of public-private partnerships in infrastructure projects is also  sometimes more about political rather than economic considerations. The author presents options to better coordinate infrastructure  financing and payments across levels of government.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=412481&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Michael A.  Pagano)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 18 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/412481-Funding-and-Investing-in-Infrastructure.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="550708"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Twelve Days of Christmas Hopes for Tough Economy, Deadlocked Congress]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In a contribution to the Christian Science Monitor, Donald Marron discusses hopes for the global economy and the political leaders struggling to keep it on an even keel.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901471&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Thu, 22 Dec 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Real Tax Reform: Flat-Tax Simplicity with a Progressive Twist]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In a contribution to the Christian Science Monitor, Donald Marron agrees that there are good reasons for a simpler tax system, as found in the flat-tax plans of GOP hopefuls Perry, Gingrich, and Cain. But they need to be made more progressive to amount to real tax reform that can pass muster politically.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901465&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Fri, 25 Nov 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Using a VAT for Deficit Reduction]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Two ways of reducing the deficit are imposing a broad VAT with a rebate to offset the burden on low-income households and increasing marginal income tax rates.  The prototype VAT would impose a larger burden on low- and middle-income households than raising income tax rates and increase compliance costs for taxpayers and administrative costs for the government, especially during a startup period.  But the VAT would lead to a smaller increase in marginal tax rates on labor income than an income tax, not affect incentives to save and invest, and impose fewer, but not necessarily smaller, distortions on economic decisions.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001567&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Jim  Nunns, Joseph Rosenberg, Eric Toder)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 22 Nov 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001567-Pew-VAT-for-Deficit-Reduction.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="478691"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Congress Begs a Crisis to Fix the Debt]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In a contribution to the CNNMoney.com, Rudolph Penner discusses the super committee's failure to fix the deficit.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901464&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Rudolph G. Penner)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 21 Nov 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Simple Tweak, Profound Effects]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In a contribution to the New York Times' Room for Debate, Roberton Williams suggests Congress scale back on tax subsidies in a way that protects America's hard-hit middle class.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901454&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Fri, 30 Sep 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Energy Policy and Tax Reform]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Donald Marron's testimony before the House Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures and the Subcommittee on Oversight of the Committee on Ways and Means on energy policy and tax reform.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901452&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Thu, 22 Sep 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/901452-Energy-Policy-and-Taxes.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="387681"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Five Tough Deadlines for Decisions on Spending, Government Debt]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In a contribution to the Christian Science Monitor, Donald Marron discusses the five deadlines that will force Congress to address spending and government debt.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901453&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Thu, 22 Sep 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Changing the Budget Process]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Rudolph Penner's testimony before the House Committee on the Budget on proposals for changing the budget process.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901451&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Rudolph G. Penner)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 21 Sep 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/901451-Budget-Process.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="116997"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Trends in Tax Expenditures, 1985-2016]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[The landmark Tax Reform Act of 1986 greatly changed the cost of tax expenditures. The revenue lost to tax expenditures declined sharply after enactment of the 1986 Act, falling from nearly 9 percent of total GDP in fiscal year 1985 to 6 percent in 1988. Since then, tax expenditures have gradually increased as a share of GDP but have remained below the 1985 level. Furthermore, the composition of tax expenditures has changed significantly.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=412404&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Allison  Rogers , Eric Toder)</author>
        <pubDate>Fri, 16 Sep 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/412404-Tax-Expenditure-Trends.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="311843"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Budget Hawks, Doves Deadlocked? Send in the Foxes!]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In a contribution to the Christian Science Monitor, Donald Marron argues for a new way of approaching the U.S.'s budget woes.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901443&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 17 Aug 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Options to Reform the Deduction for Home Mortgage Interest]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Currently, taxpayers can deduct interest on up to $1 million in acquisition debt used to buy, build, or improve their primary residence or a second designated residence. In addition, taxpayers can deduct interest on up to $100,000 in home equity loans or other loans secured by their properties regardless of the loans purpose. We consider a proposal that would limit the amount of deductible interest to the amount incurred on the first $500,000 of debt on a primary residence only, and would replace the itemized deduction with a nonrefundable tax credit equal to 15 percent of eligible home mortgage interest.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=412496&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Daniel Baneman, Hang  Nguyen, Jeff Rohaly, Eric Toder)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 16 Aug 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/412496-MID-reform-options-final.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="475754"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Options to Limit the Benefit of Tax Expenditures for High-Income Households]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[This analysis measures the revenue and distributional impacts of three proposals to limit tax expenditures for higher-income households: the Obama Administration's plan to cap the value of itemized deductions at 28 percent; an effective minimum tax (EMT) to ensure that tax liability is at least a certain percentage of a taxpayer's income; and a modified version of a recent proposal to limit the value of specific tax expenditures to two percent of adjusted gross income (AGI).]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001548&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Daniel Baneman, Jim  Nunns, Jeff Rohaly, Eric Toder, Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 02 Aug 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001548-Limit-Tax-Expenditures-High-Income.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="401052"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[America Doesn't Need A Debt Limit]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In a contribution to the Christian Science Monitor, Donald Marron argues for eliminating the U.S.'s debt limit.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901439&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 18 Jul 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Spending in Disguise]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[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.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001542&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 28 Jun 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001542-Spending-In-Disguise-Marron.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="298659"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[America Is Playing With Fire With Its Default Talk]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In a contribution to the Christian Science Monitor, Donald Marron argues that the ongoing public discussion of a default poses a major threat to U.S. financial markets.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901433&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 27 Jun 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Cut the deficit? Go after tax breaks. Yeah, tax breaks.]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In a contribution to the Christian Science Monitor, Donald Marron discusses the hundreds of billions of dollars in spending plans that masquerade as tax breaks, and why these provisions need greater scrutiny.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901427&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 24 May 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Libya Turmoil Highlights US Military Spending. Next Step: Cuts.]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In a contribution to the Christian Science Monitor, Donald Marron discusses America's renewed concern about defense spending in light of US military action in Libya.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901423&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 18 Apr 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Methodology for Distributing a VAT]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[The Tax Policy center has developed a new method for estimating the distributional effects among income groups of a broad-based consumption tax, such as a value-added tax (VAT). The new method provides separate measures of the long-run and transitional effects of introducing a VAT. In the long-run, taxpayers bear the VAT burden in proportion to the sum of their labor compensation, transfer payments, and super-normal returns to capital, but normal investment returns would be exempt. In the transition, an additional burden would be imposed on the spend-down of existing wealth, but indexed transfer payments would be exempt.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001533&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Eric Toder, Jim  Nunns, Joseph Rosenberg)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 12 Apr 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001533-Methodology-Distributing-VAT.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="491039"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[How Large Are Tax Expenditures?]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Tax expenditures are getting increased scrutiny from budget hawks and tax reformers. New Treasury estimates, released as part of President Obamas recent budget, indicate that these tax preferences will reduce individual and corporate income tax revenues by almost $1.1 trillion in 2011. Those provisions will also increase spending on refundable tax credits by $108 billion and will reduce payroll and excise tax receipts by $111 billion. Together, the tax expenditures identified by Treasury will total almost $1.3 trillion this year.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001526&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 30 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001526-Expenditure-Estimates.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="92566"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Tax Proposals in the 2012 Budget]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[President Obama's 2012 Budget contains a number of tax provisions that would cut taxes for low- and middle-income households and raise taxes on wealthier taxpayers. This resource guide describes the tax proposals, offers more detailed commentary on key provisions, and links to tables showing the distributional effects of the overall proposal and various elements of the plan.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001524&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Benjamin H. Harris, Elaine Maag, Donald Marron, Jim  Nunns, Joseph Rosenberg, Kim Rueben, Eric Toder, Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 28 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001524-2012-Budget.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="846998"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Federal Budget: Fix It Before A Crisis]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In a contribution to the CNNMoney.com, Donald Marron discusses the urgent need to reverse the federal deficit and reform the tax code.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901416&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 22 Mar 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Tax Reform In An Era Of Deficits]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Tax reform should focus on three goals:1) reducing needless complexity, 2) reducing backdoor spending through the tax code, and 3) reforming rules for taxing saving and investment to make our tax law more suitable for a globalized economy. This note summarizes steps that should be taken and how recent recommendations by the President's Economic Recovery Board, the National Taxpayer Advocate, the President's Fiscal Commission, and the Bipartisan Policy Center provide a road map for future changes.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901406&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Eric Toder)</author>
        <pubDate>Thu, 17 Feb 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Tax Reform: The Wheels Are Beginning To Turn]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In a contribution to the Christian Science Monitor, Donald Marron discusses strategies to reform Americas broken tax code. Marron proposes ridding the system of corporate and individual tax preferences to create a fairer, simpler, and revenue-generating system with fewer tax breaks and lower rates across the board.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901407&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 16 Feb 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Fix the CLASS Act, Don't Repeal It]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[The Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) Act is a national, voluntary long-term care insurance program included in the Affordable Care Act of 2010. Some congressional critics would repeal the law. But while the measure is poorly designed, it should be reformed. Changes could increase the marketability of the policies and avoid adverse selection that threatens this insurance program. A successful CLASS program would be a first step towards transforming long-term care from Medicaid to an insurance-based system.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901405&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Howard Gleckman)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 15 Feb 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Closing Loopholes Won't Be Simple]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[New York Times' Room for Debate: The United States has one of the world's highest corporate tax rates, but many large U.S. corporations pay little U.S. tax.Eliminating special interest loopholes could pay for some, but not much reduction in the corporate rate.The main problem is that it is hard for one country to tax entities that transcend national boundaries.A better approach would tax more corporate income at the individual shareholder level.The Presidents Fiscal Commission and the Bipartisan Policy Center both recommend reducing individual and corporate tax rates and taxing capital gains and dividends as ordinary income.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001495&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Eric Toder)</author>
        <pubDate>Thu, 03 Feb 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Cutting Tax Preferences is Key to Tax Reform and Deficit Reduction : Before the Senate Committee on the Budget]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Donald Marron's testimony before the Senate Committee on the Budget on reforming the tax code.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001492&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 02 Feb 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001492-Marron-Cutting-Tax-Preferences.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="649656"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Reforming Federal Taxes: Lessons From History : Before the Senate Committee on the Budget]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Eugene Steuerle's testimony before the Senate Committee on the Budget on reforming the tax code.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001494&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( C. Eugene Steuerle)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 02 Feb 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001494-Steuerle-Reforming-Taxes.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="383873"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Debt Ceiling: Geithner Won't Let Us Default]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Treasury Secretary Geithner recently warned that the U.S. may default if Congress doesn't increase the federal debt limit. In this guest commentary at CNN Money, Donald Marron explains how Geithner will make sure that the U.S. does not default on the public debt, even if Congress is slow to increase borrowing authority.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001487&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Thu, 20 Jan 2011 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[State Revenue Responses to Fiscal Shortfalls]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[The current economic downturn has resulted in a
sharp decline in state tax revenues. Forty-six states faced budget shortfalls when passing their fiscal year (FY) 2011 budgets, and 17 states reported shortfalls of more than 20 percent. According to the National Association of State Budget Officers, in tandem with budget cuts, 40 states enacted legislation to raise tax revenues in some form between fiscal years 2009 and 2011.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001471&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Kim Rueben, Ritadhi  Chakravarti)</author>
        <pubDate>Fri, 10 Dec 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001471-State-Revenue-Response.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="92442"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Basic Facts on the Deficit]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[The U.S. government is spending more than it is bringing in. The result is the budget deficit. Over the next 10 years, the deficit is projected to exceed $10 trillion if current budget policies are continued. By 2019, even under optimistic assumptions, the deficit will be 5.5 percent of GDP, an extremely high figure in good times. Deficits are a problem because whether financed domestically or abroad, they result in reduced national income for the United States and its citizens, tougher credit for homeowners, and reduced expansion possibilities for businesses.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=412213&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Urban Institute)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 15 Sep 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/412213-basic-facts-deficit.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="170660"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Catastrophic Budget Failure]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Continuation of current U.S. fiscal policy will lead to an enormous accumulation of debt with potentially disastrous economic consequences. Exacerbated by the recent economic turmoil and fueled by the willingness of creditors to lend at very low interest rates, there is signifi cant risk that necessary fi scal reform will be put off. In this paper, we consider the causes, mechanisms, and macroeconomic fallout of a catastrophic budget failure  a situation in which markets perception of the credit worthiness of the U.S. government rapidly deteriorates, leaving it unable to access credit markets at any reasonable rate of interest and generating a high probability of the previously unthinkable: the U.S. government defaulting on its debt obligations.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001564&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Leonard E. Burman, Katherine Lim, Jeff Rohaly, Joseph Rosenberg)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 01 Sep 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001564-CBF-NTJ.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="572923"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Five Myths about the Bush Tax Cut]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[The tax cuts enacted in 2001 and 2003, known as the Bush tax cuts, are set to expire Dec. 31, and the fight over what to do is increasingly heated. Should the tax cuts expire, as some Democrats have said? Should they be extended, as most Republicans maintain? Or does the answer lie somewhere in between, as the Obama administration, led by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, has argued in recent weeks?]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001423&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( William G. Gale)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 03 Aug 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[The Future of Individual Tax Rates: Effects on Growth and Distribution : Donald Marron's Testimony Before the Senate Committee on Finance]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Donald Marron's testimony before the Senate Committee on Finance on the individual tax system.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901360&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Donald Marron)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 14 Jul 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/901360_marron_future_rates.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="301897"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[The Future of Individual Tax Rates: Effects of Economic Growth and Distribution : Leonard Burman's Testimony before the Senate Committee on Finance]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Leonard Burman's testimony before the Senate Committee on Finance on whether and how to extend the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901361&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Leonard E. Burman)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 14 Jul 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/901361_burman_future_rates.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="131750"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Top Federal Individual Income Tax Rates]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[The reduction in individual income tax rates and the other tax cut provisions enacted in 2001 and 2003 were "sunset" at the end of 2010.  Unless Congress acts to delay the expiration of the rate reductions, the top individual rate will rise from 35% in 2010 to 39.6% for 2011 and later years.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=412113&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Jim  Nunns)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 16 Jun 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/412113_top_federal_income.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="481329"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Why Nearly Half of Americans Pay No Federal Income Tax]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[During the recent tax filing season, cable news and talk radio repeatedly discussed the Tax Policy Center's (TPC's) estimate that 47 percent of Americans would pay no federal income tax for 2009.  However much of the commentary failed to explain why.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=412106&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 09 Jun 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/412106_federal_income_tax.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="83079"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Countdown to Catastrophe]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[This article, written for a lay audience, discusses the causes and consequences of catastrophic budget failure.  When Americas ballooning federal debt becomes unmanageable, we might simply refuse to honor our obligations, triggering a worldwide financial collapse and an economic downtown that would make the recent unpleasantness seem like a walk in the park. Or we might create enough money to pay back our creditors, domestic and foreign, triggering a hyperinflation reminiscent of failed states like the Weimar Republic in the 1930s (or, more recently, Zimbabwe) that would wipe out the savings of anyone caught holding wealth in dollars.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001372&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Leonard E. Burman)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 26 Apr 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001372_catastrophe.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="2511737"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Government Spending Undercover : Spending Programs Administered by the IRS]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In 2011, the U.S. government will spend over $1 trillion on tax expenditures.  These programs often fly under the radar of media and public opinion. This paper discusses obstacles to subjecting tax expenditures to the same scrutiny as direct outlays and offers some recommendations for incorporating them in the budget process.  It then provides a framework of questions and principles policymakers should consider in evaluating these programs.  We conclude that the size of tax subsidies should not be based on a claimant's marginal tax rate or itemizing status, implying that refundable credits are usually the best way to deliver them.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001365&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Lily L. Batchelder, Eric Toder)</author>
        <pubDate>Thu, 22 Apr 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001365_undercover_spending.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="549178"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[The Myth of Income Tax Freeloading]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[This year's tax season controversy surrounds the Tax Policy Center's estimate that 47% of households do not owe income tax. The estimate has raised concerns about equity (nearly half of families free-riding on the rest of us) and civic responsibility (can democracy work when half of voters get government for free?). It also just ticked off some people who feel they're bearing more than their fair share of the tax burden.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901340&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Leonard E. Burman)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 19 Apr 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Health mandate: It's just a tax break in disguise]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[CNNMoney.com.  Len Burman discusses the health insurance mandate.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901338&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Leonard E. Burman)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 14 Apr 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Effects of Imposing a Value-Added Tax To Replace Payroll Taxes or Corporate Taxes]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[This report examines the effects of imposing a new value added tax (VAT) in the United States and using the revenue raised to lower payroll tax and corporate income tax rates.  We summarize how different forms of VAT operate and compare how a VAT, payroll tax, and corporate income treat different sources of income and the different ways each tax distort economic decision-making.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=412062&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Joseph Rosenberg, Eric Toder)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 07 Apr 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/412062_VAT.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="322907"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[5 Myths about your taxes]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[April is here, which means it's almost time to pony up and render unto  Caesar. We've gathered our receipts and other documents, and dragged ourselves  to the strip-mall tax preparer or fired up do-it-yourself software to determine  how big our refund is -- or how much we owe Uncle Sam. No one likes to pay  taxes, but as we get ready to stand in line at the post office on the 15th, it  might be useful to dispel some of the most common myths about this springtime  ritual.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901335&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Rosanne Altshuler, Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 05 Apr 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Taxes and the Budget]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Leonard Burman's testimony before the Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures House Ways and Means Committee on taxes and the federal budget.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901330&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Leonard E. Burman)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 23 Mar 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/901330_burman_testimony.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="134395"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Preliminary Revenue Estimate and Distributional Analysis of the Tax Provisions in A Roadmap for America's Future Act 2010]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[The Roadmap for America's Future Act of 2010 is a detailed reform package that overhauls Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and the U.S. federal tax system. In a January 27, 2010, report, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) analyzed the spending provisions of the plan. This paper presents the Tax Policy Center's estimates of the revenue and distributional impact of the Roadmap's tax provisions.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=412046&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Joseph Rosenberg)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 09 Mar 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/412046_ryan_taxplan.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="62016"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Held Harmless by Higher Income Tax Rates?]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In 2010, 45 percent of tax returns will either remit no federal income tax or receive a net tax refund.  But this figure overstates the share of taxpayers who would be unaffected by higher income tax rates.  Raising all rates by 1 percent would hold only 34 percent of tax returns harmless; others would either pay higher taxes or receive smaller net rebates.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001359&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Rachel M. Johnson, Eric Toder)</author>
        <pubDate>Thu, 04 Mar 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001359_harmless_income.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="485402"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Tax Issues Related to Small Business Job Creation]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Eric Toder testified before the Senate Committee on Finance on how recently proposed incentives for small business may help economic recovery. These incentives are only a small component of broader policies to accelerate recovery from the deep recession we have experienced in the past two years and reduce unemployment.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901323&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Eric Toder)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 24 Feb 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/901323_Toder_testimony.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="42355"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Variation in Effective Tax Rates]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[The expansion of refundable tax credits and the proliferation
of specialized tax breaks means that households
with similar incomes can face wildly different
effective federal tax rates. For example, among middle-income
households, the median effective income tax rate
is 3 percent, but 10 percent of those households face
effective rates exceeding 9 percent and another 10 percent
receive a net government subsidy greater than 4 percent
of their cash income.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=412032&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Katherine Lim, Jeff Rohaly)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 22 Feb 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/412032_effective_tax_rates.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="1903730"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Tax Proposals in the 2011 Budget]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[The Tax Policy Center has examined the key tax proposals in President Obama's 2011 budget. Separate discussions below describe each of the proposals including current law, proposed changes, and, when appropriate, the distributional effects. The budget as presented by the president lacks complete details on many of the tax proposals. Some provisions had virtually no detail and our discussion of them is necessarily limited.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=412029&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Rosanne Altshuler, Dan Halperin, Benjamin H. Harris, Joseph Rosenberg, Eric Toder, Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Fri, 19 Feb 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/412029_2011_budget.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="572143"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Let's freeze more than chump change]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[President Obama has proposed to freeze most domestic discretionary spending -- a step in the right direction, but not enough. The $250 billion in expected savings over the next decade is chump change compared with deficits that could top $10 trillion if policy doesn't change.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901319&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Leonard E. Burman)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 02 Feb 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Desperately Seeking Revenue]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In August 2009, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO, 2009) projected that the federal budget deficit would total $7.1 trillion over the 2010-2019 decade-under current law. That outcome would require the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts to sunset as scheduled in 2011 and Congress to stop "patching" the alternative minimum tax (AMT) to minimize its bite. If neither of those things happens, CBO says the cumulative deficit over the decade would jump to $11.1 trillion, more than doubling the national debt. CBO characterizes that situation as being unsustainable and it is hard to find anyone who would disagree.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=412018&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Rosanne Altshuler, Katherine Lim, Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Fri, 29 Jan 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/412018_seeking_revenue.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="147739"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[The Status Report: Obama and the Tax System]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[illiam Gale and Benjamin Harris give the president a B, noting their approval of the administration's aggressive use of tax and fiscal policy in pursuing the paramount goal of saving the economy-but also concern about the resulting lack of progress in efforts to reform the tax and fiscal system.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001357&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( William G. Gale, Benjamin H. Harris)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 20 Jan 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[We need to ban the evil Santas]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[The two Santas came to Washington in 2000 and threaten to never leave. If we don't send them packing, Christmas Future could be very bleak indeed.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901315&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Leonard E. Burman)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 18 Jan 2010 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Where, Oh Where, Has the Estate Tax Gone?]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Unless Congress changes the law, the federal estate tax
will disappear on January 1, 2010. For the first time since
the 1916 inception of the tax, the estate of anyone dying
in 2010 will go to heirs tax free, a result of the 2001 tax
law that phased out the estate tax over 10 years. But that
law itself expires in 2011 and the estate tax will revert to
pre-2001 law.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001354&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 23 Dec 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001353_estate_tax.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="487018"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Comparing Subsidies for the House and Senate Health Care Bills]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Consider an employer who bears an equal cost for their employees and must choose between the proposed subsidy for those on the exchange and the current subsidy for those who get employer-provided health insurance.  What are the consequences for the employee? This article discusses the results for the employee under the current health care bills in the House and the Senate.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001352&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Stephanie Rennane, C. Eugene Steuerle)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 16 Dec 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001352_comparing_subsidies.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="479143"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Taxation of Credit Derivatives]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[One arguably good thing about the current financial crisis is that it has broadened public understanding of the global financial system. Few people had heard of credit default swaps two years ago, but these instruments have, since then, forced themselves on the attention the most casual reader of financial news. Credit default swaps brought insurance giant AIG to its knees, and precipitated a $100 billion U.S. government bailout of the company. More recently, it has been reported that hedge fund manager John Paulson made more than $3 billion during 2008 using credit default swaps to bet against subprime mortgages.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001350&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Lawrence Lokken)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001350_credit_derivatives.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="176051"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Personal savings need a boost]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[The Washington Times.  America's days of economic  dominance are numbered because we don't save. The government is borrowing like  crazy, and households aren't doing much better. The personal savings rate --  the share of after-tax income that people set aside for a rainy day -- has been  falling like a stone since the early 1980s.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901298&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Leonard E. Burman)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 10 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Pyrrhic victory on health reform?]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Washington Times op-ed.  Leonard Burman discusses the politics of the health care reform debate.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901281&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Leonard E. Burman)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 01 Sep 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Activist Fiscal Policy to Stabilize Economic Activity]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Facing the most severe recession since the 1930s, and probably the longest as well, the
U.S. government has adopted an aggressive countercyclical fiscal policy stance, beginning with the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008 in February of that year, shortly after the recessions designated starting date, and followed one year later by the much larger American Recovery and Reinvestment Tax Act of 2009. These two bills, adopted under different presidents, both contained temporary tax rebates for households and temporary investment incentives for firms, indicating at least limited bipartisan acceptance of these approaches to countercyclical stimulus.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001311&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Alan J. Auerbach, William G. Gale)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 24 Aug 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001311_activist_fiscal.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="168734"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[The Distribution of Federal Taxes, 2009-12]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Overall, the federal tax system is progressive. On average, households with higher incomes pay taxes that are a larger share of their income. But barring legislative action, the numerous sunsets and phase-ins that Congress has written into the tax code will result in a tax system that is in a state of flux over the next few years. As a result, current law dictates significant changes in the degree of progressivity in the federal tax system between now and 2012. This paper summarizes the Tax Policy Center's latest estimates of the distribution of federal taxes for 2009 through 2012.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411943&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Rachel M. Johnson, Jeff Rohaly)</author>
        <pubDate>Fri, 21 Aug 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411943_distribution_federal.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="485932"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Mitigating the Potential Inequity of Reducing Corporate Rates]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Some tax proposals would reduce the marginal corporate tax rate. Others would boost the top individual rate. Although a differential between corporate and individual rates could reduce the overall tax on distributed corporate income, it could also enable higher-income taxpayers to shelter income from taxation. This paper explains how denying the lower corporate rate to income from services and passive investments combined with provisions that prevent people from permanently escaping tax on retained earnings would mitigate this problem.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411931&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Dan Halperin)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 29 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411931_mitigating_corporate_rates.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="232723"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Conversations: Leonard Burman]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Tax Notes, July 27, 2009. Leonard E. Burman is a fellow at the Urban Institute and director of the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center. He previously served as deputy assistant secretary for tax analysis at the Treasury Department from 1998 to 2000 and as senior analyst at the Congressional Budget Office. This fall, he will become the first Daniel Patrick Moynihan Chair in Public Policy at the Maxwell School of Syracuse University. Burman recently sat down with Tax Analysts' Sam Young to discuss his future plans, the outlook for healthcare reform in Congress, and his proposal to create a VAT to pay for healthcare.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001294&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Sam  Young)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 28 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001294_burman_interview.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="556686"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Here Comes the Next Fiscal Crisis]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Los Angeles Times op-ed, July 8, 2009. In the immediate future, policymakers will face a delicate balancing act between encouraging economic recovery and establishing fiscal sustainability. Alan J. Auerbach and William G. Gale examine the economic challenges facing the U.S.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001291&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Alan J. Auerbach, William G. Gale)</author>
        <pubDate>Fri, 10 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Give Up A Benefit, Gain Jobs]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Washington Post op-ed, July 9, 2009. Employer-paid health insurance is entirely tax-free  a break that will cost the Treasury about $250 billion this year. Len Burman looks at tax-free health insurance provided by employers.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901269&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Leonard E. Burman)</author>
        <pubDate>Fri, 10 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Who Pays No Income Tax?]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Nearly half of all tax units will pay no income tax in 2009. The fraction of non-taxpayers differs widely, depending on income, tax filing status, and whether the unit is elderly or contains children.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001289&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Thu, 02 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001289_who_pays.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="497881"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[An Update on the Economic Crisis and the Fiscal Crisis: 2009 and Beyond]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[his paper reviews recent economic events and their impact on U.S. fiscal performance and prospects. We highlight the historic nature of the 2009 budget outcomes, the unsustainability of plausible ten-year budget projections, and the increasingly dire long-term fiscal problem. These conditions leave federal policy makers with difficult choices. Over the next several years, as the recession ends and the economy recovers, policy makers will face a delicate balancing act between encouraging economic recovery and establishing fiscal sustainability. Even if a successful recovery ensues, however, medium-term and long-term fiscal problems have become increasingly urgent.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001284&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Alan J. Auerbach, William G. Gale)</author>
        <pubDate>Thu, 25 Jun 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001284_economic_crisis.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="222069"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Taxing Capital Gains in Australia: Assessment and Recommendations]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[One of the most vexing and contentious issues in taxation is the proper treatment of capital gains-the increase in value of an asset such as shares of company stock or a business. In principle, under an income tax, capital gains should be included in the tax base as they accrue. In practice, if they are taxed at all, capital gains are almost always taxed only when an asset is sold (or "realized") and generally at lower rates than other income.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411857&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Leonard E. Burman)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 25 Mar 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411857_capgains_australia.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="124572"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Tax Proposals in the 2010 Budget]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[President Obama's 2010 Budget contains a number of tax provisions that would cut taxes for low- and middle-income households and raise taxes on wealthier taxpayers. This resource guide describes the tax proposals, offers more detailed commentary on key provisions, and links to tables showing the distributional effects of the overall proposal and various elements of the plan.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411849&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Rosanne Altshuler, Leonard E. Burman, Howard Gleckman, Dan Halperin, Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 16 Mar 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411849_2010_budget.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="410067"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[The Economic Crisis and the Fiscal Crisis: 2009 and Beyond]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In 2009, the federal deficit will be larger as a share of the economy than at any time since the 1940s.   After 2009, we project an average deficit of $1 trillion per year for the next 10 years, under optimistic assumptions.  The longer-run picture is even bleaker, with a fiscal gap of 7-9 percent of GDP -- between $1 trillion and $1.3 trillion annually in current dollars.  Recent trends in credit default swap markets suggest that although fiscal policy problems are usually described as medium- and long-term issues, these problems may be upon us much sooner than previously expected.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411843&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Alan J. Auerbach, William G. Gale)</author>
        <pubDate>Thu, 19 Feb 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411843_economic_crisis.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="126716"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Tax Stimulus Report Card: Conference Bill]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[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.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411839&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Rosanne Altshuler, Leonard E. Burman, Howard Gleckman, Dan Halperin, Benjamin H. Harris, Elaine Maag, Kim Rueben, Eric Toder, Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Fri, 13 Feb 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411839_conference_reportcard.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="283816"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Tax Stimulus Report Card: Comparing the House and Senate Bills]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[This report card compares the provisions of the House and Senate tax stimulus bills (the "American Recovery and Reinvestment Tax Plan of 2009"). The combined 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 as we learn more about specific provisions and as the stimulus bills move through Congress.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411834&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Rosanne Altshuler, Howard Gleckman, Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 03 Feb 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411834_comparison_reportcard.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="43188"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Tax Stimulus Report Card: Senate Finance Committee]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[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.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411830&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Rosanne Altshuler, Leonard E. Burman, Howard Gleckman, Dan Halperin, Benjamin H. Harris, Elaine Maag, Kim Rueben, Eric Toder, Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Thu, 29 Jan 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411830_senate_stimulus_reportcard.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="259957"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Tax Stimulus Report Card: House Bill]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[The Tax Policy Center has graded the key tax provisions of the pending House 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.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411827&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Rosanne Altshuler, Leonard E. Burman, Howard Gleckman, Elaine Maag, Eric Toder, Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 26 Jan 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411827_stimulus_reportcard.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="145366"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[President-Elect Obama's Tax and Stimulus Plans]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[During the presidential campaign, Barack Obama proposed a comprehensive tax plan that would raise taxes on high-income taxpayers, cut taxes for low- and middle-income households, and lose $2.9 trillion dollars of revenue over ten years. Obama will take office with the economy in sharp recession and a deteriorating fiscal situation, made worse by new spending on a bailout plan. Faced with those crises, Obama says he will pursue both his campaign tax plan and additional tax-related proposals addressing problems created by the downturn. This paper examines revenue and distributional effects of the tax plan and describes some stimulus proposals.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411816&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Thu, 08 Jan 2009 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411816_obamas_tax.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="781582"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[How Big Are Total Individual Income Tax Expenditures, and Who Benefits from Them?]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Analysts often add up tax expenditures to estimate an aggregate cost, but those tallies are inaccurate because they ignore interactions among provisions. We estimate that interactions raise the cost of nonbusiness tax expenditures by 5 to 8 percent, depending on whether an AMT patch is in effect. In 2007, these tax expenditures totaled about $750 billion5.5 percent of GDP. While tax expenditures benefit taxpayers in all income groups, high-income households gain more relative to income than low-income ones. Although the AMT eliminates some tax preferences, it increases overall tax expenditures because most AMT taxpayers face higher marginal tax rates.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001234&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Eric Toder, Leonard E. Burman, Christopher Geissler)</author>
        <pubDate>Thu, 04 Dec 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001234_tax_expenditures.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="154654"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Taxes under Obama and McCain]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Tax policy has been a major issue in the Presidential election campaign, with both candidates proposing extensive changes. The candidates take very different approaches to tax policy. The main differences are two: first, McCains plans would reduce revenues by significantly more than Obamas; and second, McCains would be substantially less progressive, especially among very high income taxpayers. From the standpoint of growth or simplicity, both plans disappoint. It is hard to believe that either set of changes would have significant growth effects on the economy.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001223&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( William G. Gale, Benjamin H. Harris)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 03 Nov 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001223_taxes.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="176897"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[The Presidential Candidates' New Tax Proposals - October 27, 2008]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In response to the deterioration of the economy and the decline in asset values, Senators McCain and Obama have offered new proposals related to unemployment compensation, retirement savings, taxation of capital gains, and job creation. Although the proposals would provide some benefit, they have significant shortcomings.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411781&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 27 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411781_candidates_october.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="50149"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Back from the Grave : Revenue and Distributional Effects of Reforming the Federal Estate Tax]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[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.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411777&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Leonard E. Burman, Katherine Lim, Jeff Rohaly)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 20 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411777_back_grave.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="655716"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Sunday Forum: The Debt Bomb]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Pittsburgh Post-Gazette op-ed, September 28, 2008. The current financial crisis poses a severe threat to the economy, but it also creates a tremendous opportunity, writes Rudolph Penner in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. It gives politicians cover for undertaking painful actions to get the long-run deficit under control-actions that should have been taken long ago.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901194&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Rudolph G. Penner)</author>
        <pubDate>Sun, 28 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[An Updated Analysis of the 2008 Presidential Candidates' Tax Plans: Executive Summary - Revised September 15, 2008]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Both John McCain and Barack Obama have proposed tax plans that would substantially increase the national debt over the next ten years, according to a newly updated analysis by the non-partisan Tax Policy Center. Compared to current law, TPC estimates the Obama plan would cut taxes by $2.9 trillion from 2009-2018. McCain would reduce taxes by nearly $4.2 trillion. Obama would give larger tax cuts to low- and moderate-income households and pay some of the cost by raising taxes on high-income taxpayers.  In contrast, McCain would cut taxes across the board and give the biggest cuts to the highest-income households.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411750&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Roberton Williams, Howard Gleckman)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 15 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411750_updated_candidates_summary.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="67994"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Deficit: What Caused It, Why It Matters]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[CNNMoney.com op-ed, July 30, 2009. William Gale and Alan Auerbach explain that the government is spending more than it's bringing in, resulting in a deficit. They explain why that gap must be brought under control.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001295&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Alan J. Auerbach, William G. Gale)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 30 Jul 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Solvency Recommendations for Ohio]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[This report examines the funding of unemployment insurance (UI) in Ohio. It proposes seven recommendations to improve program solvency, both in the short run and in the long run. The two main recommendations to improve short-run solvency are to: 1) implement a substantial increase in the taxable wage base and 2) institute a temporary freeze in weekly benefits, both recommendations to be effective in 2009. Indexation of the taxable wage base is a principal recommendation to improve solvency in the long-run.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411743&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Wayne Vroman)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 28 Jul 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411743_ohio_solvency.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="61448"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[An Updated Analysis of the 2008 Presidential Candidates' Tax Plans]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[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.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411741&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Leonard E. Burman, Surachai Khitatrakun, Greg Leiserson, Jeff Rohaly, Eric Toder, Roberton Williams)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jul 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411741_updated_candidates.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="310886"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[An Updated Analysis of the 2008 Presidential Candidates' Tax Plans: Executive Summary]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Both John McCain and Barack Obama have proposed tax plans that would substantially increase the national debt over the next ten years, according to an updated analysis by the non-partisan Tax Policy Center. Compared to current law, TPC estimates the Obama plan would cut taxes by $2.8 trillion from 2009-2018. McCain would reduce taxes by nearly $4.2 trillion. Under current law, the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts would expire in 2010 and the Alternative Minimum Tax would remain in full force.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411742&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Roberton Williams, Howard Gleckman)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jul 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411742_updated_candidates_summary.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="59390"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Distribution of the 2001-2006 Tax Cuts : Updated Projections, July 2008]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Since 2001, Congress has passed a major tax bill almost every year. Most have reduced taxes significantly and, since they were not accompanied by spending cuts, the resulting deficits have increased the national debt. The tax cuts total almost $2.2 trillion over ten years, and that total may be vastly understated if some or all of the cuts are extended beyond their scheduled expiration date of 2010. In addition, the cuts exacerbated the growing problem of the alternative minimum tax (AMT). Barring legislative action, more than 33 million taxpayers will fall prey to the AMT in 2010.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411739&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Greg Leiserson, Jeff Rohaly)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 22 Jul 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411739_tax_cuts.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="189430"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[The Individual Alternative Minimum Tax: Historical Data and Projections : Updated June 2008]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Congress enacted a minimum tax in 1969 to guarantee that high-income individuals paid at least some tax. The AMT now threatens to grow from a footnote in the tax code to a major component affecting tens of millions of taxpayers. Although most lower- and middle-income taxpayers will remain unaffected by it, policymakers need to deal with the explosive growth of the AMT from an obscure tax affecting only 20,000 filers in 1970 to one affecting more than 33 million-a third of all taxpayers-by 2010. This document provides updated estimates of AMT participation, revenue, and distribution.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=411703&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Greg Leiserson, Jeff Rohaly)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 25 Jun 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411703_individual_amt.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="89231"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Budgeting for Capital Investment : Testimony Before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[The unified budget of the U. S. government is, in most respects, a cash budget. It is somewhat biased against public investment, because the benefits of such investments accrue over a period of time whereas the cash outlay is immediate. This testimony looks at options for directing more funds to highways, mass transit, and other public investments. It examines higher fuel taxes, tolls and congestion fees; capital budgeting; infrastructure banks; a capital revolving fund; public-private partnerships; and approaches to improving the efficiency of current grants and subsidies. It concludes that tolls and congestion fees are very promising as are public-private partnerships. A capital revolving fund would be useful for agencies that only invest occasionally. A capital budget and infrastructure banks are less desirable.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901178&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Rudolph G. Penner)</author>
        <pubDate>Fri, 13 Jun 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/901178_Penner_capital_investment.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="36058"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Taking Back Our Fiscal Future]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[The authors of this paperlongtime federal budget and policy  expertswere drawn together by a deep concern about the nation's long-term  fiscal outlook. Despite diverse  philosophies and political leanings, they found solid common ground and agree  that unsustainable deficits in the federal budget threaten the health and vigor  of the American economy and the first step toward establishing budget  responsibility is to reform the budget decision process so that the major  drivers of escalating deficitsSocial Security, Medicare, and Medicaidare no  longer on autopilot. The paper provides  specific policy recommendations and outlines the reasons action is critical.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001155&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Joseph Antos, Robert Bixby, Stuart Butler, Paul Cullinan, Alison Fraser, William Galston, Ron Haskins, Julia Isaacs, Maya MacGuineas, Will Marshall, Pietro Nivola, Rudolph G. Penner, Robert D. Reischauer, Alice M. Rivlin, Isabel V. Sawhill, C. Eugene Steuerle)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 31 Mar 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001155_fiscal_future.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="122254"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Understanding States' Fiscal Health During and After the 2001 Recession]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Every state except Vermont operates under some sort of balanced budget requirement. That means that to serve the increased need of distressed populations during recessions, states must either increase revenue or reallocate resources dedicated to other programs. Similarly, when revenue declines, states must raise taxes or reallocate resources. This report examines the extent to which rainy day and general fund savings were a significant factor in helping states cope with fiscal stress during and after the 2001 recession, a possible explanation for the lower than expected legislated tax increases and social welfare cuts.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001135&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Elaine Maag, David Merriman)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 30 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001135_states_fiscal_health.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="736639"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Emerging State Business Tax Policy : More of the Same, or Fundamental Change?]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[Much of the state tax policy discussion during the past decade has centered on the performance of corporate income taxes and ways to restructure them. This report focuses on state responses to the weak corporate tax collections during the 2000-2003 period as well as to the revenue performance during the years immediately preceding and following the recession. The report is not an attempt to argue that the corporate income tax is an important component of good state tax policy. Instead, our focus is on identifying state tactics to maintain or change the tax, determining whether those strategies are good tax policy, and evaluating whether they are working to achieve the basic goals of the states.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001134&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( William F. Fox, LeAnne Luna, Matthew N. Murray)</author>
        <pubDate>Tue, 29 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001134_state_business_tax.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="550611"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Make the Tax Cuts Work]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[New York Times, January 23, 2008 - Since 2001, official Washington's answer to every policy question has been the same. What should we do with a big surplus? Tax cuts. How do we beat back global terrorism? Tax cuts. Increase energy independence? Rebuild New Orleans? Expand health insurance coverage? Tax cuts, tax cuts, tax cuts. Now comes another question to which taxes have long been at least part of the answer. How do we stimulate the economy to prevent or shorten a recession?]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=901141&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Leonard E. Burman)</author>
        <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[Rangel's AMT Riddle Continues]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In this article, C. Eugene Steuerle explores the political and budgetary pressures facing Charles Rangel, the House Ways and Means Committee Chairman, with regard to the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). He further analyzes various options to fix the AMT, the ramifications for Rangel, and the path taken.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001129&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( C. Eugene Steuerle)</author>
        <pubDate>Fri, 18 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001129_rangels_amt.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="437957"/>
		
    </item>


    <item>
	<title><![CDATA[The Alternative Minimum Tax : Assault on the Middle Class]]></title>
	<description><![CDATA[In a tax code with no shortage of ironies, the alternative minimum tax (AMT) stands out. Created by Congress in 1969, it was aimed at millionaires, but relatively few millionaires pay it. It is billed as a low-rate levy, but most of its victims face higher taxes because of it. It undermines two widely lauded reforms of the income tax -- restoring both bracket creep and the marriage penalty. And though nobody favors keeping this Frankenstein alive, it will be very difficult to kill. Welcome to the tax policy twilight zone.]]></description>
	<link>http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/publications/url.cfm?id=1001113&amp;RSSFeed=Budget_Issues.xml</link>
		<author>info@taxpolicycenter.org ( Leonard E. Burman)</author>
        <pubDate>Mon, 29 Oct 2007 00:00:00 EST</pubDate>
		
		<enclosure url="http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/1001113_Burman_AMT.pdf" type="application/pdf" length="633668"/>
		
    </item>
</channel>
</rss>

