This paper addresses economic issues related to the unemployment insurance (UI) system, focusing on the worker- and employer-facing aspects of UI policy—i.e., the ways that benefits are provided to workers and that employers are taxed to fund those benefits. We outline principles for optimal...
Unemployment Insurance (UI) serves a core purpose that is intuitive for both economists and noneconomists: it provides insurance against the risk of job loss. Because employment is the only or primary source of income for most families, job loss often delivers a financial blow that would be...
The Filer Voter experiment, conducted in 2018, assessed the effectiveness of conducting voter registration drives at Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) sites for lower-income households in Cleveland and Dallas. The Filer Voter program doubled the likelihood of unregistered voters registering...
This report analyzes a straightforward mechanism to mitigate middle-class wage stagnation: a wage tax credit of 100 percent of earnings up to a maximum credit of $10,000, called a universal earned income tax credit. The child tax credit would increase from $2,000 to $2,500 and be made fully...
This paper examines the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017, the largest tax overhaul since 1986. The new tax law makes substantial changes to the rates and bases of both the individual and corporate income taxes, cutting the corporate income tax rate to 21 percent, redesigning international...
Eugene Steuerle, Richard Fisher Chair at the Urban Institute and co-founder of the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center gave this luncheon presentation at the ABA Tax Meetings Exempt Organization.
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...
The House and Senate just passed different versions of proposals to restructure the federal income tax. As of December 12, 2017, a House-Senate conference committee was reconciling the two bills. The bills reduce the corporate tax rate to 20 percent, introduce a preference for income from pass-...
Tax cuts often look like “free lunches” for taxpayers, but they eventually have to be paid for with other tax increases or spending cuts. We examine the distributional effects – with and without financing – of both the House and Senate versions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. When ignoring...
This brief documents how the US tax system treats the most common forms of equity compensation, including stock, restricted stock units, and stock options. In most cases, these forms of equity compensation are taxed just like cash wages, salaries, and bonuses. Employees pay ordinary income taxes...
Rethinking Unemployment Insurance Taxes and Benefits
This paper addresses economic issues related to the unemployment insurance (UI) system, focusing on the worker- and employer-facing aspects of UI policy—i.e., the ways that benefits are provided to workers and that employers are taxed to fund those benefits. We outline principles for optimal...
Rethinking Unemployment Insurance Taxes and Benefits
Unemployment Insurance (UI) serves a core purpose that is intuitive for both economists and noneconomists: it provides insurance against the risk of job loss. Because employment is the only or primary source of income for most families, job loss often delivers a financial blow that would be...
The Filer Voter Experiment: How Effective is Voter Registration at Tax Time?
The Filer Voter experiment, conducted in 2018, assessed the effectiveness of conducting voter registration drives at Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) sites for lower-income households in Cleveland and Dallas. The Filer Voter program doubled the likelihood of unregistered voters registering...
A Universal EITC: Sharing the Gains from Economic Growth, Encouraging Work, and Supporting Families
This report analyzes a straightforward mechanism to mitigate middle-class wage stagnation: a wage tax credit of 100 percent of earnings up to a maximum credit of $10,000, called a universal earned income tax credit. The child tax credit would increase from $2,000 to $2,500 and be made fully...
Effects of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act: A Preliminary Analysis
This paper examines the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017, the largest tax overhaul since 1986. The new tax law makes substantial changes to the rates and bases of both the individual and corporate income taxes, cutting the corporate income tax rate to 21 percent, redesigning international...
Challenges & Opportunities for Charities after the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
Eugene Steuerle, Richard Fisher Chair at the Urban Institute and co-founder of the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center gave this luncheon presentation at the ABA Tax Meetings Exempt Organization.
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...
What Workers and Companies Should Know About the Republican Tax Bills
The House and Senate just passed different versions of proposals to restructure the federal income tax. As of December 12, 2017, a House-Senate conference committee was reconciling the two bills. The bills reduce the corporate tax rate to 20 percent, introduce a preference for income from pass-...
Winners and Losers After Paying for the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
Tax cuts often look like “free lunches” for taxpayers, but they eventually have to be paid for with other tax increases or spending cuts. We examine the distributional effects – with and without financing – of both the House and Senate versions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. When ignoring...
How Should Tax Reform Treat Employee Stock and Options?
This brief documents how the US tax system treats the most common forms of equity compensation, including stock, restricted stock units, and stock options. In most cases, these forms of equity compensation are taxed just like cash wages, salaries, and bonuses. Employees pay ordinary income taxes...