I believe that we can work toward providing a strong safety net for all people—and that the tax system will always be an important part of that effort.
Distributional analyses play a prominent role in policy discussions. Both tax and transfer policy have important distributional consequences, but traditionally they have been examined separately. This report describes a new methodology for integrated distributional analysis that imports results...
Families with young children tend to have lower incomes than other families. The current child tax credit provides substantial benefits to families with children, but the maximum benefit of $1,000 is the same for all children under 17, regardless of age. We analyze a proposal that would provide...
Income volatility may complicate tax filing and predicting eligibility for critical tax benefits, such as the earned income tax credit. Half of all working-age adults¬—and 64 percent of low-income, working-age adults—have household income that for at least one month of the year will spike above...
Statement of Elaine Maag, Senior Research Associate at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center, before the Democratic Women’s Working Group on May 24th, 2017.
This year, Congress will consider what may be the biggest tax bill in decades. This is one of a series of briefs the Tax Policy Center has prepared to help people follow the debate. Each focuses on a key tax policy issue that Congress and the Trump administration may address. This brief...
During the presidential campaign, Donald Trump proposed three new tax benefits related to child care – an expanded credit for low-income families, a deduction for higher income families, and a savings account. These proposals bring attention to the burden child care costs can place on low- and...
The Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 requires the IRS to delay tax refunds for taxpayers who claim an earned income tax credit or additional child tax credit on their returns until at least February 15. The delay could help the IRS better check claims for these credits. But this...
The income tax provisions related to families and work—filing status, rate schedules, the standard deduction, personal exemptions, the child and earned income tax credits, and the taxation of dependents—are complex, too small to encourage work for many low earners, and unfair to some families....
This brief analyzes seven options for Child Tax Credit reform that would (1) make the CTC more consistent with other parts of the tax code; (2) target additional benefits to young children; or (3) broadly increase the credit for most current recipients.
As a Senator, Kamala Harris has proposed broad legislation designed to raise the incomes of low- and middle-income workers via her LIFT (Livable Incomes for...
The Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act , HEROES Act, would substantially increase the earned income tax credit (EITC) for workers without children...
The Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act (HEROES Act), passed by the House of Representatives, would temporarily expand the child tax credit (CTC)...
The IRS has done an impressive job delivering over 80 million rebate payments authorized by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. But...
To its credit, the IRS has been quickly distributing the first tranche of rebates authorized under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act...
The federal government’s new coronavirus payments to adults and children will provide much-needed cash to 90 percent of US households. Unfortunately, tens of millions of...
President Trump and some members of Congress are promoting a payroll tax cut to respond to the growing coronavirus outbreak. But if they are looking...
A handful of the remaining Democratic presidential candidates remain committed to increasing the earned income tax credit (EITC), particularly for workers without children at home...
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) significantly changed how families with children were treated under the individual income tax, but for many - changed...
Senate Democrats have rallied around the Working Families Tax Relief Act (WFTRA) that would significantly expand the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and more modestly...
High-profile Democrats are floating ambitious proposals to reduce economic pressure on working Americans by expanding or supplementing tax credits for low- and middle-income families. These...
For many US households, the ongoing partial government shutdown is inconvenient. But for low-income households, it may become a severe hardship. If the shutdown goes...
Some low- and middle-income families in Colorado, Minnesota, New Mexico, and North Dakota are facing state income tax hikes. And the larger the family, generally...
Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA) is proposing to raise the incomes of working families through a new tax proposal called the “LIFT (Livable Incomes for Families...
The District of Columbia is considering a creative new plan to transform the city’s earned income tax credit (EITC) from a one-time payment received at...
