Administrative tax data contain a wealth of information that is potentially valuable for research and analysis. However, the legal and ethical imperative to protect taxpayer privacy has restricted access to a small number of government analysts and select researchers. We propose to develop in...
Mark Mazur, Director of the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center, testified before the US Senate Committee on Small Business during a hearing entitled “Tax Reform: Removing the Barriers to Small Business Growth.” In his testimony, Mazur presented a review of the principles of desirable tax policy,...
This year, Congress will consider what may be the biggest tax bill in decades. This is one of a series of briefs the Tax Policy Center has prepared to help people follow the debate. Each focuses on a key tax policy issue that Congress and the Trump administration may address. This brief...
This year, Congress will consider what may be the biggest tax bill in decades. This is one of a series of briefs the Tax Policy Center has prepared to help people follow the debate. Each focuses on a key tax policy issue that Congress and the Trump administration may address. This brief...
Differences in state taxes paid and benefits received for immigrants and native-born Americans are driven by differences in demographic characteristics. Spending on immigrants is somewhat greater primarily because they have more school age children. Fiscal impacts also vary by state. This brief...
On April 26, 2017, the White House released a brief outline of its proposed “2017 Tax Reform for Economic Growth and American Jobs.” This short paper lays out what we know about the Administration’s tax plan as well as preliminary suppositions about unspecified components. This work will form...
A tax deduction intended to encourage conservation of environmentally important land and historic buildings has become a lucrative way for real estate developers to finance development projects—cheating the government out of billions of dollars of revenue and in some cases doing little to...
This brief discusses the abuse of tax deductions intended to encourage conservation of environmentally friendly land and historic buildings. This abuse is on the rise and a key policy question is whether this tax expenditure represents a good return on the scarce dollars the federal government...
Income volatility may complicate tax filing and predicting eligibility for critical tax benefits, such as the earned income tax credit. Half of all working-age adults¬—and 64 percent of low-income, working-age adults—have household income that for at least one month of the year will spike above...
Statement of Elaine Maag, Senior Research Associate at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center, before the Democratic Women’s Working Group on May 24th, 2017.
A Synthetic Income Tax Return Data File: Tentative Work Plan and Discussion Draft
Administrative tax data contain a wealth of information that is potentially valuable for research and analysis. However, the legal and ethical imperative to protect taxpayer privacy has restricted access to a small number of government analysts and select researchers. We propose to develop in...
Options for Small Business Tax Reform
Mark Mazur, Director of the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center, testified before the US Senate Committee on Small Business during a hearing entitled “Tax Reform: Removing the Barriers to Small Business Growth.” In his testimony, Mazur presented a review of the principles of desirable tax policy,...
Taxes and Income Inequality
This year, Congress will consider what may be the biggest tax bill in decades. This is one of a series of briefs the Tax Policy Center has prepared to help people follow the debate. Each focuses on a key tax policy issue that Congress and the Trump administration may address. This brief...
How Would Repeal of the State and Local Tax Deduction Affect Taxpayers Who Pay the AMT?
This year, Congress will consider what may be the biggest tax bill in decades. This is one of a series of briefs the Tax Policy Center has prepared to help people follow the debate. Each focuses on a key tax policy issue that Congress and the Trump administration may address. This brief...
State and Local Fiscal Effects of Immigration
Differences in state taxes paid and benefits received for immigrants and native-born Americans are driven by differences in demographic characteristics. Spending on immigrants is somewhat greater primarily because they have more school age children. Fiscal impacts also vary by state. This brief...
What is Known about Donald Trump's Tax Plan?
On April 26, 2017, the White House released a brief outline of its proposed “2017 Tax Reform for Economic Growth and American Jobs.” This short paper lays out what we know about the Administration’s tax plan as well as preliminary suppositions about unspecified components. This work will form...
Charitable Contributions of Conservation Easements
A tax deduction intended to encourage conservation of environmentally important land and historic buildings has become a lucrative way for real estate developers to finance development projects—cheating the government out of billions of dollars of revenue and in some cases doing little to...
Abuse of tax deductions for charitable donations of conservation lands are on the rise
This brief discusses the abuse of tax deductions intended to encourage conservation of environmentally friendly land and historic buildings. This abuse is on the rise and a key policy question is whether this tax expenditure represents a good return on the scarce dollars the federal government...
Income Volatility: New Research Results with Implications for Income Tax Filing and Liabilities
Income volatility may complicate tax filing and predicting eligibility for critical tax benefits, such as the earned income tax credit. Half of all working-age adults¬—and 64 percent of low-income, working-age adults—have household income that for at least one month of the year will spike above...
Understanding Child Care Subsidies in the Tax System
Statement of Elaine Maag, Senior Research Associate at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center, before the Democratic Women’s Working Group on May 24th, 2017.