[Charleston (WV) Sunday Gazette Mail] The growing complexity of the income tax, proposed tax-free "savings accounts," and expansions of tax loopholes are poisoning the income tax and creating a consumption tax by default.
The Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act (EGTRRA) of 2001 back-loaded many of its provisions. For example, EGTRRA reduces the top income tax rate from 38.6 percent currently to 37.6 percent in 2004 and 35 percent in 2006. The future income tax cuts scheduled under EGTRRA have...
The Enron debacle had potential implications in three areas of tax policy: tax-favored retirement plans, stock options, and differences in book versus tax accounting. The most important issue relates to the increasing riskiness of retirement plans that (1) can pay in a lump sum amount, (2) are...
The release of the Congressional Budget Office's new baseline budget projections on January 29, 2003 offers the opportunity to reassess the fiscal status of the federal government as Congress and the administration consider a new set of budget proposals. This article examines the current budget...
It happens every time. An administration puts forward an economic package, and then suggests all the wonderful things it is going to do for the economy and for the public. Few costs. Few trade-offs. Win-win. Then opponents start picking apart the pieces. But then they play the same game. We can...
The effect of fiscal policy on economic growth is a controversial and long-standing topic in economic theory, empirical research, and economic policymaking. It is at the heart of the policy debate surrounding the sharp increases in official federal budget surpluses in the 1990s, the equally...
Families with children in poverty receive net subsidies from the federal income and payroll tax system, but that has not always been the case. In the 1970s, income tax filing thresholds were low, and even families in poverty who owed no income tax faced substantial payroll taxes. Congress...
The Presidents January 7, 2003 economic stimulus proposal for enhancing the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA) would, in addition to ending the corporate taxation of dividends and speeding up tax rate and marriage penalty relief, accelerate the increase in the...
On January 7, 2003, President Bush proposed a new package of tax cuts, consisting primarily of a new tax cut for dividends and capital gains on corporate stock and an acceleration of most but not all of the provisions of the 2001 tax cut that were scheduled to take effect in future years.1 In...
Both the president and members of Congress have expressed strong political desire to appear to be "doing something" about the past recession and the current unemployment rate. This sentiment cuts across political parties and between the executive and congressional branches of government. In...
Bush Launches Stealth Attack on Income Tax
[Charleston (WV) Sunday Gazette Mail] The growing complexity of the income tax, proposed tax-free "savings accounts," and expansions of tax loopholes are poisoning the income tax and creating a consumption tax by default.
Future Income Tax Cuts From the 2001 Tax Legislation
The Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act (EGTRRA) of 2001 back-loaded many of its provisions. For example, EGTRRA reduces the top income tax rate from 38.6 percent currently to 37.6 percent in 2004 and 35 percent in 2006. The future income tax cuts scheduled under EGTRRA have...
The Enron Debacle
The Enron debacle had potential implications in three areas of tax policy: tax-favored retirement plans, stock options, and differences in book versus tax accounting. The most important issue relates to the increasing riskiness of retirement plans that (1) can pay in a lump sum amount, (2) are...
Perspectives on the Budget Outlook
The release of the Congressional Budget Office's new baseline budget projections on January 29, 2003 offers the opportunity to reassess the fiscal status of the federal government as Congress and the administration consider a new set of budget proposals. This article examines the current budget...
This Is Not Your Daddy's Recession
It happens every time. An administration puts forward an economic package, and then suggests all the wonderful things it is going to do for the economy and for the public. Few costs. Few trade-offs. Win-win. Then opponents start picking apart the pieces. But then they play the same game. We can...
Fiscal Policy and Economic Growth
The effect of fiscal policy on economic growth is a controversial and long-standing topic in economic theory, empirical research, and economic policymaking. It is at the heart of the policy debate surrounding the sharp increases in official federal budget surpluses in the 1990s, the equally...
Tax Burden on Poor Families Has Declined Over Time
Families with children in poverty receive net subsidies from the federal income and payroll tax system, but that has not always been the case. In the 1970s, income tax filing thresholds were low, and even families in poverty who owed no income tax faced substantial payroll taxes. Congress...
The President's Proposal to Accelerate the Child Tax Credit and Related Options
The Presidents January 7, 2003 economic stimulus proposal for enhancing the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA) would, in addition to ending the corporate taxation of dividends and speeding up tax rate and marriage penalty relief, accelerate the increase in the...
The President's Tax Proposal: Second Thoughts
On January 7, 2003, President Bush proposed a new package of tax cuts, consisting primarily of a new tax cut for dividends and capital gains on corporate stock and an acceleration of most but not all of the provisions of the 2001 tax cut that were scheduled to take effect in future years.1 In...
Do We Really Need More Stimulus?
Both the president and members of Congress have expressed strong political desire to appear to be "doing something" about the past recession and the current unemployment rate. This sentiment cuts across political parties and between the executive and congressional branches of government. In...