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Tax Policy Center

Research & Commentary

Working paper
Federal Budget and Economy

The Whiskey Rebellion and the Fight for Equal Taxation in Early America

In response to Hamilton’s upwardly redistributive “funding system,” which directed revenue from a regressive tax on whiskey to the wealthy owners of public debt, western Pennsylvania farmers revolted, seeking a new tax system that was “equal” – that is, proportionate to wealth. To the extent...

July 18, 2022
Vanessa Williamson
Working paper
Federal Budget and Economy

Taxation and the Origins of the Constitution

In the years following the American Revolution, the states and Congress struggled to pay down the domestic debt, which had consolidated in the hands of wealthy speculators. With a serious money shortage in the countryside, small farmers found they could not pay their taxes – and many were angry...

July 18, 2022
Vanessa Williamson
Brief
Federal Budget and Economy

Trickle-Down Social Security

Life expectancy at age 65 has grown by about six years since Social Security began paying benefits in 1940 and, despite some recent temporary declines, is expected to increase significantly further in future decades. Despite a modest increase in the age at which people can claim full Social...

October 28, 2021
C. Eugene Steuerle
Research report

A Synthetic Supplemental Public-Use File of Low-Income Information Return Data: Methodology, Utility, and Privacy Implications

The Statistics of Income division of the Internal Revenue Service releases an annual public-use file of individual income tax returns that is invaluable to tax analysts in government agencies, nonprofit research organizations, and the private sector. However, the Statistics of Income division...

November 11, 2020
Claire BowenVictoria L. BryantLeonard E. BurmanSurachai KhitatrakunGraham MacDonaldRobert McClellandPhilip StallworthKyle UeyamaAaron R. WilliamsNoah Zwiefel
Research report
Individual Taxes

Effects of Recent Reductions in the Internal Revenue Service’s Appropriations on Returns on Investment

From 2010 through 2019, funding for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) dropped by 24 percent, after adjustment for inflation. As a consequence, the percentage of taxpayers who were audited fell by nearly half. In this paper, we use confidential IRS data to compare the returns on investments (ROI...

June 26, 2020
Janet HoltzblattJamie McGuire
Brief
Individual Taxes

Tax Incentives for Charitable Contributions

This chartbook explores the implications of current-law income tax incentives for charitable donations along with several alternatives for tax deductions that are more universally available.

November 12, 2019
Robert McClellandC. Eugene SteuerleChenxi LuAravind Boddupalli
Testimony
Individual Taxes

Reflections on the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act

Mark Mazur, Director of the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center, testified before the Joint Economic Committee during a hearing entitled “Unleashing America’s Economic Potential.” In his testimony, Mazur presented a review of the principles of desirable tax policy, clear and less clear findings...

April 11, 2018
Mark J. Mazur
Research report
Federal Budget and Economy

A Methodology for Integrated Distributional Analysis of Taxes and Transfers

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...

September 29, 2017
Gordon B. MerminFrank SammartinoMatthew BuettgensMelissa M. FavreaultElaine Maag
Research report
Federal Budget and Economy

Estimates of a Proposal to Establish Guaranteed Retirement Accounts, Financed by Reduced Limits on Current Law Contributions to Defined Contribution Retirement Saving Plans

The Tax Policy Center (TPC) prepared revenue and distributional estimates of a proposal to replace the current tax benefits for defined contribution (DC) qualified retirement plans with a new Guaranteed Retirement Account (GRA). TPC estimates that the proposal would reduce federal income and...

August 23, 2017
Eric ToderSurachai Khitatrakun
Commentary
Federal Budget and Economy

Can Republicans Thread the Needle on Tax Policy?

Bill Gale discusses the current tax reform initiatives by Congress and the Administration and outlines some issues Republicans may face when trying to pass tax legislation in this...

August 2, 2017
William G. Gale

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