Illinois' state gasoline tax is set to double to nearly 40 cents per gallon starting July 1, 2019. Currently, four states (CA, NJ, PA, and WA) have gas taxes exceeding 40 cents per gallon, while Alaska has the lowest tax at 9 cents per gallon.
June 17, 2019
: Daily Deduction

Caps, Cuts, and Billions

Budget deal, debt limit talks continue.
June 14, 2019Renu Zaretsky
: Daily Deduction

Who Knew Paying for Tax Cuts Would Be So Hard?

Brady: “Hard to know” if the TCJA will pay for itself.
June 13, 2019Renu Zaretsky
: TaxVox

Marty Feldstein Was An Economics Giant And A Good Man

Martin Feldstein, who died earlier this week, was an intellectual giant who transformed modern public finance and tax policy analysis. He also was a kind,...
June 13, 2019William G. Gale
Federal Budget and Economy: TaxVox

Seven Think Tanks Describe Their Vision Of Government, And How They’d Fund It

Yes, you can have an ambitious domestic policy agenda and a nearly balanced budget. You can, at least, if you are a think tank and...
June 13, 2019Howard Gleckman
: Daily Deduction

Extenders And Final SALT Guidance

Neal shops a 3-year extender bill, and more.
June 12, 2019Renu Zaretsky
State and Local Issues: Testimony

School Funding in New York State: Does the Current Formula Ensure Access for Students of Color?

In this testimony before the New York Advisory Committee to the United States Commission on Civil Rights, Kim Rueben examines New York State’s education funding formula and how limits in state aid amounts affect different low-income students. While New York State has one of the highest per student
June 12, 2019Kim S. Rueben
State and Local Issues: TaxVox

Chicago’s Streaming Tax Is A Bad Tax But It’s Not A “Netflix Tax”

Bloomberg recently reported that Sony sent Chicago a $1.2 million check , ending its legal challenge to the city’s so-called “Netflix tax.” That everyone called...
June 11, 2019Richard C. Auxier
Individual Taxes: Conference

Fighting Poverty and the Rising Cost of Living

The earned income tax credit (EITC) is one of the United States’ most effective income-support programs, lifting nearly 5.8 million people out of poverty every...
June 11, 2019
: Daily Deduction

Cheers To Threats, Tax Cuts, and Seeing Through New Tricks!

House passes a revised IRS reform bill.
June 11, 2019Renu Zaretsky
: Daily Deduction

A Trade War That Wasn’t… And A Deal That Already Was

Trump backs off Mexico tariff threat—for now—in return for few concessions.
June 10, 2019Renu Zaretsky
About 25% of individual income tax filers claimed a deduction for charitable contributions in 2016. The share claiming this deduction ranges from 12% in West Virginia to 39% in Maryland. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act will significantly reduce these.
June 10, 2019
Individual Taxes: Research report

Redesigning the EITC: Issues in Design, Eligibility, Delivery, and Administration

The earned income tax credit provides substantial assistance to low- and moderate-income workers. Benefits tilt heavily to families with children. Prompted in part by the success of the credit and in part by shortcomings in the credit, policymakers, advocates, and analysts have offered up reform
June 10, 2019Elaine MaagDonald MarronErin Huffer
Individual Taxes: Brief

Expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit: The Economic Security Project’s Cost-of-Living Refund

The cost-of-living refund (CLR), a proposal from the Economic Security Project, would revise the current earned income tax credit (EITC) by increasing benefits for many people, expanding eligibility for the credit, and paying the credit in advance via monthly payments. The proposal would provide up
June 10, 2019Elaine MaagDonald MarronErin Huffer
: TaxVox

The IRS Data Book Tells A Story of Shrinking Staff, Fewer Audits, and Less Customer Service.

The IRS published its annual trove of tax statistics Internal Revenue Service Data Book, 2018 on May 20. On its face, the volume is a...
June 7, 2019Robert A. Weinberger
: Daily Deduction

Is the US a Weekend Away from a Trade War with Mexico?

Talks with Mexican officials yield no progress, as yet.
June 7, 2019Renu Zaretsky
State and Local Issues: TaxVox

Will A Global Opioid Settlement Mimic The 1990s Tobacco Experience?

For states, opioids may become the new tobacco. That is to say, states increasingly believe lawsuits against drugmakers and others are a potential source of significant revenue
June 6, 2019Howard Gleckman
Business Taxes

Effects of Corporate and Business Provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017 significantly changed how business income is taxed. To what extent have these changes affected tax planning...
June 6, 2019
: Daily Deduction

Neal Says No Thanks to Trump’s New York Returns; IMF Urges End to US-China Trade War

House Ways & Means Chairman Neal won’t ask for Trump’s New York state tax returns.
June 6, 2019Renu Zaretsky
: TaxVox

What The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Means For Tax Expenditures

In a new paper , my former Tax Policy Center colleague Daniel Berger and I calculate that the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA)...
June 5, 2019Eric Toder
: Daily Deduction

Trump Doubles Down, Biden Has A Climate Plan, And The Past Is Prologue.

Up next week: Tariffs on goods from Mexico.
June 5, 2019Renu Zaretsky
Individual Taxes: TaxVox

The Section 529 Savings Plan Is A Sweet Deal. Too Sweet.

As welcome as the 529 benefits are, we don’t need them, and we should not have them.
June 5, 2019Renu Zaretsky
Federal Budget and Economy: Research report

Distributional Effects of Individual Income Tax Expenditures After the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act

This paper provides estimates of the total cost of and distributional effects of nonbusiness tax expenditures claimed on individual tax returns after enactment of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, taking account of interactions among provisions. Nonbusiness tax expenditures will reduce tax liability
June 5, 2019Eric ToderDaniel Berger
: Daily Deduction

Talks, Tolls, Boosts, and Bills

Pompeo will meet with Mexican officials on tariffs.
June 4, 2019
: Daily Deduction

A Revised W-4, A Confirmation of Broken Promises, And State Agreements

CEA Chair Kevin Hassett resigns.
June 3, 2019Renu Zaretsky