The IRS spent $12.3 billion in fiscal year 2020. 39% of its budget went towards enforcement activities, 36% on operations support, 22% on taxpayer services, and 2% on business systems modernization.
July 19, 2021
July 19, 2021
According to Treasury estimates, the six largest income tax expenditures will each cost over $100 billion in fiscal year 2021, and include stimulus payments and benefits for health care, retirement, housing, capital gains, and families with children.
July 12, 2021
July 12, 2021
In FY 2020, the IRS had around 75,800 full-time-equivalent employees. This workforce was larger than in 2018 and 2019, but still significantly smaller than what it was in the 1990s.
July 5, 2021
July 5, 2021
In 2020, the share of filers who check the box for the Presidential Election Campaign Fund on their tax returns was the lowest it has ever been, at 3.6 percent. Comparatively, in 1976, this share was about 28 percent.
June 28, 2021
June 28, 2021
Salaries and wages are the largest sources of income for most households. In 2018, they comprised 68% of total adjusted gross income across all individual income tax returns, but only 17% for those with incomes over $10 million.
June 21, 2021
June 21, 2021
In 2020, 47% of federal revenue came from individual income taxes and 38% from payroll taxes. Over time, the shares from corporate income taxes and excise taxes have declined.
June 14, 2021
June 14, 2021
State and local governments raised over $27 billion from net lottery revenue in 2018. Only Delaware, Rhode Island, and West Virginia raised over 2% of their general revenue from lotteries, while six states did not have any lotteries in 2018.
June 7, 2021
June 7, 2021
In 2019, five states (CT, MD, IL, NY, PA) and DC spent over 25% of their state motor fuel tax revenue on mass transit. Overall, 10% of revenue went towards mass transit, 27% for local roads, 51% for state highways, and 12% for other spending.
May 31, 2021
May 31, 2021
Missouri will increase its state gas tax rate for the first time in nearly 30 years starting October 2021. Currently, state gas tax rates range from 9 cents per gallon in Alaska to 58 cents per gallon in Pennsylvania.
May 24, 2021
May 24, 2021
The American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC) can offset qualified higher education expenses for eligible students. In 2018, 4.8% of individual income taxpayers claimed the credit, with an average amount of $866 per claimant.
May 17, 2021
May 17, 2021
The average white household had $402,000 in unrealized capital gains in 2019, compared with $94,000 for Black households and $130,000 for Hispanic or Latino households. These disparities have generally widened over time.
May 10, 2021
May 10, 2021
In FY 2019, 3.55 million federal tax returns were prepared at the IRS's VITA and TCE sites, or 2.3% of total individual income tax returns filed. Due to the pandemic’s in-person site closures, the FY 2020 numbers will likely show declines.
May 3, 2021
May 3, 2021
44 states and DC levy a corporate income tax, with top rates ranging from 2.5% in North Carolina to 9.99% in Pennsylvania. The average top tax rate on corporate income across states is 6.0% in 2021.
April 26, 2021
April 26, 2021
In 2018, income from partnership and S-corporation businesses comprised nearly a quarter of adjusted gross income (AGI) for those with AGI over $1 million, compared to 1% for those with AGI under $100,000.
April 19, 2021
April 19, 2021
Most US businesses are classified as pass-through businesses whose owners pay the individual income tax, not the corporate income tax. In 2017, pass-throughs comprised 96% of all business tax returns and 41% of business receipts.
