Fiscal Facts | Tax Policy Center

Skip to main content

Ownership of Financial Assets by Race

Virtually all families hold some amount of financial assets, broadly defined. However, the median value of holdings for non-Hispanic Whites is 17 times greater than for Hispanics or Latinos, and 13 times greater than for non-Hispanic Blacks or African Americans.

September 17, 2018

September 17, 2018

State Gasoline Tax Rates

State gasoline taxes ranged from 9 to 58 cents per gallon as of January 2018. Three states (California, Pennsylvania, Washington) had taxes exceeding 40 cents per gallon while Alaska had the lowest tax rate at 9 cents per gallon.

September 10, 2018

September 10, 2018

Capital Gains Income Distribution

Income from capital gains largely benefit high-income households. In 2015, for those with adjusted gross income (AGI) over $10 million, 47.3% of their AGI came from capital gains, compared to 0.9% for those with AGI under $100,000.

September 3, 2018

September 3, 2018

State Cigarette Tax Rates

Montana is currently voting on a state cigarette tax rate hike to fund Medicaid expansion. 2018 rates range from Missouri's 17 cents to New York's and Connecticut's $4.35 per pack. The rate is below $1 per pack in 14 states and above $2 per pack in 15 states.

August 27, 2018

August 27, 2018

Bottom 20%'s share of national income

According to the latest CBO estimates of after-tax household income, the share received by the bottom quintile of households was 6.9 percent in 2014, and has fluctuated between 6 and 7 percent for over 30 years.

August 20, 2018

August 20, 2018

State Receipts for Highways and Mass Transit

State motor-fuel tax receipts are used to maintain state-administered highways, mass transit, local roads and streets. From 2005 to 2015, aggregate receipts were nearly flat in inflation-adjusted terms, while the share for mass transit projects grew from 4.3% to 12.3%.

August 13, 2018

August 13, 2018

Nonresident Tax Returns

In 2015, about 872,500 returns (0.6% of all individual income tax returns) were filed by nonresident taxpayers with US-source income and self-employed residents of American territories who pay Social Security taxes. Twenty years earlier, there were 407,200 (0.35% of all returns).

August 6, 2018

Mortgage Interest Deduction, by Income

About 22% of all returns, and over 70% of returns with AGI over $200,000 claimed the Mortgage Interest Deduction in 2015. These shares will drop, especially for middle-income households, since the new tax law substantially increases the standard deduction.

July 30, 2018

Thirty percent of all returns, and over 90% of returns with AGI over $200,000, claimed the state and local tax (SALT) deduction in 2015. These percentages will drop dramatically because the new tax law increases the standard deduction and caps the SALT deduction.

July 23, 2018

Federal Expenditures and Revenues, annually

Federal expenditures in FY2017 totaled almost $4 trillion, or about 21% of GDP. Federal revenues in FY2017 totaled $3.3 trillion, or about 17.3% of GDP. The last time the federal budget was in surplus or balance (FY1998-2001), revenues were around 19-20% of GDP.

July 16, 2018

Distribution of Net Estate Tax

The estate tax is part of contentious political debate, especially how it affects small farms and family businesses. In 2015, 67.1% of net estate tax came from estates that exceeded $20 million in value, compared to only about 2% from estates valued under $5 million.

July 9, 2018

Airway Trust Fund Annual Receipts

The Airport and Airway Trust Fund, in effect since 1971, is mainly comprised of excise receipts from taxing passenger air fares, air cargo, and aviation fuels. Revenues totaled $15 billion in 2017; but as a share of GDP, have increased only modestly in the last few decades.

July 2, 2018

Property Tax Revenue by State

State and local revenue from property taxes totaled $488 billion in 2015. On a per capita basis, DC was the highest with $3,359, followed by NJ with $3,082, and AL was the lowest with $540. Notably, all states in the northeast region collected more than $2,000 per capita.

June 25, 2018

Black Lung Disability Trust Fund Annual Receipts

The Black Lung Disability Trust Fund collected $429 million from taxes on coal mine operators and disbursed $183 million to affected miners and families in 2017. But the fund's debt exceeds $4 billion due to interest payments and the coal tax rate is set to decrease in 2019.

June 18, 2018

Young People and Primary Residence Ownership

For most age groups, particularly those under 45, home ownership rates have declined since 1989 and especially since 2004. However, for the over 75 age group, home ownership rates have increased.

June 11, 2018