State and Local Issues: Research report

Municipal Debt: What Does It Buy and Who Benefits?

This paper examines the incidence of the federal income tax exemption of interest on state and local bonds, applying a fixed-savings, simplified general equilibrium approach to estimate incidence effects on both the sources and uses of income. In contrast to traditional empirical work that
October 29, 2014Harvey GalperKim S. RuebenRichard C. AuxierAmanda Eng
Business Taxes: TaxVox

Is There Any Chance Congress Will Pass Business Tax Reform Next Year?

In the run-up to next week’s congressional elections, Republicans are saying that if they win control of the Senate, they will try to pass business tax reform as part of an ambitious “we can get things done" agenda. Is there any possibility that a GOP-controlled Congress could rewrite the business
October 28, 2014Howard Gleckman
: TaxVox

Reporting, Responding, and Partnerships

Congress is in recess through the mid-term elections. The Daily Deduction will post each Monday until then. Stranger than fiction: The IRS, “structuring,” and asset seizures. A business’ cash deposits, if under $10,000, do not trigger a government reporting requirement. But that could look like “
October 27, 2014Renu Zaretsky
Federal Budget and Economy: TaxVox

Why Tax Lawyers and Tax Economists Can’t Communicate

Any close observer of the making of tax policy can see it: Lawyers and economists looking at the same issue through entirely different prisms. I’ve been fascinated by how their respective brains work, and why they have so much trouble communicating with one another. It turns out I am not alone. In
October 23, 2014Howard Gleckman
State and Local Issues: TaxVox

Bertha and the French Professor: Lessons for Public Private Partnerships

Jean Tirole is an influential , respected, and by all accounts gracious man who won this year’s Nobel Prize in economics. Bertha is a 7,000-ton tunnel boring machine that’s been stuck under Seattle for nine months—but is still tweeting —as state officials and a private contractor battle over who
October 21, 2014Tracy Gordon
Federal Budget and Economy: TaxVox

A "Normal" Budget Isn't Really Normal

Treasury closed the financial books on fiscal 2014 last week. As my colleague Howard Gleckman noted , the top line figures all came in close to their 40-year averages. The $483 billion deficit was about 2.8 percent of gross domestic product, for example, slightly below the 3.2 percent average of
October 20, 2014Donald Marron
: TaxVox

On Residence, Retirement, and Economic Records

Congress is in recess through the mid-term elections. The Daily Deduction will post each Monday until then. What’s a multinational to do? Where is it to go? Senator Dick Durbin and Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden seem pleased that Chicago-based AbbVie’s decided to drop its deal with Dublin
October 20, 2014Renu Zaretsky
State and Local Issues: TaxVox

Ahead of the Midterms, State Economic Trends Present Mixed Signals

Voters say the economy is the most important issue in the upcoming election. But as the most recent State Economic Monitor reports, the economy looks very different depending on what (and what state) you're analyzing. And polls suggest that voters faced with these mixed messages may focus on other
October 17, 2014Richard C. Auxier
Federal Budget and Economy: TaxVox

Taxes and Spending Return To “Normal”-- But Not For Long

Yesterday, the Treasury Department reported that the deficit for Fiscal Year 2014, which ended on Sept. 30, fell to $483 billion, or about 2.8 percent of Gross Domestic Product. This being Washington, the report was hailed as either an enormous success or dismissed as meaningless. Who is right? Is
October 16, 2014Howard Gleckman
State and Local Issues: Brief

State Economic Monitor: October 2014

Most states ended the summer of 2014 on a positive economic note. Up from 14 states a year earlier, 25 states reported August unemployment rates below 6 percent. Every state but Alaska added jobs within the last year. But some troubling signs remain. Inflation-adjusted average weekly wages declined
October 15, 2014Richard C. Auxier
Individual Taxes: TaxVox

The Small, Happy World of Supersized IRAs

When Mitt Romney released his tax return information during the 2012 presidential campaign, many of us were introduced to the world of supersized IRAs. Romney somehow had a tax-preferred retirement nest egg valued at $101 million. Maybe he got there by making standard annual contributions and
October 14, 2014Howard Gleckman
: TaxVox

Cheap Talk, Scoring, and Promises

Congress is in recess through the mid-term elections. The Daily Deduction will post each Monday until then. Counting devices before they hatch? Should the GOP take the Senate in November , medical device makers may see a renewed push to repeal the 2.3 percent excise tax on their products. The tax
October 13, 2014Renu Zaretsky
Federal Budget and Economy: TaxVox

Ryan and Lew Both Object to JCT Scoring of Future Tax Reform

Like a couple of baseball managers working the umpires before a big World Series game, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew and Representative Paul Ryan (R-WI), who wants to be the next chair of the House Ways & Means Committee, are looking to change the way Congress scores tax reform even before
October 9, 2014Howard Gleckman
Individual Taxes: TaxVox

How Asset Building Tax Subsidies Miss Their Targets

Nearly one-third of all federal tax expenditures--$384 billion in 2013 alone-- is aimed at various forms of asset building, such as retirement savings, higher education, and home ownership. Yet, according to research by several of my Tax Policy Center and Urban Institute colleagues, these tax
October 7, 2014Howard Gleckman
Individual Taxes: TaxVox

It’s Not Easy to Escape the Local Pension Vise

Last week’s federal court ruling in the municipal bankruptcy case of Stockton, CA highlighted the enormous challenge faced by local governments with underfunded public pensions. There are ways out of this vise, but none are easy, and all are fraught with risks. State governments face at least a $1
October 6, 2014Tracy Gordon
: TaxVox

“Communication” Defined, Cash Borrowed, Reform Still Needed

Congress is in recess through the mid-term elections. The Daily Deduction will post each Monday until then. In Oregon, Comcast’s cable service is ruled a “communication” service, and its tax bill could be huge. So said the Oregon Supreme Court late last week: Property that Comcast uses to provide
October 6, 2014Renu Zaretsky
Business Taxes: TaxVox

Pass-Through Firms Report $800 Billion in Net Income, Can’t Be Ignored in Business Tax Reform

Washington is going through another one of its periodic calls for business tax reform. But new research by my Tax Policy Center colleague Joe Rosenberg shows just how hard it is to separate business taxation from the individual tax code. And it should serve as a warning to those who think Congress
October 2, 2014Howard Gleckman
Individual Taxes: Testimony

Myth and Reality of the Safety Net: The 1983 Social Security Reforms

In 1983 the Social Security Trust Fund was rapidly emptying. President Reagan appointed a bipartisan commission headed by Alan Greenspan to recommend solutions. The commission could not agree. Republicans adamantly opposed tax increases and Democrats opposed any slowdown in the growth of benefits.
September 30, 2014Rudolph G. Penner
Federal Budget and Economy

T14-0113 - Options to Reduce the 10-Percent Individual Income Tax Rate, Increase the Standard Deduction and Reform the EITC, Impact on Tax Revenue ($ billions), 2015-24, Baseline: Current Law

September 30, 2014
Campaigns, Proposals, and Reforms: TaxVox

The Public Wants Clear Rules About Campaign Giving Through Tax-Exempts. Is It Possible?

A poll released today by the conservative Hudson Institute and the liberal group Public Citizen finds that nearly 9 in 10 voters surveyed favor clear rules that define political activities by non-profit tax-exempt organizations. The public’s desire for clarity is not surprising, given the amount of
September 30, 2014Howard Gleckman
Business Taxes: Journal Article

Professor Shay Got It Right: Treasury Can Slow Inversions

In a recent Tax Notes article, Shay argued that Treasury could write regulations to reduce the tax incentives for U.S. corporations to expatriate. Rosenthal agrees with Shay and analyzes the legal support for regulations under section 385.
September 30, 2014Steven M. Rosenthal
Federal Budget and Economy: TaxVox

The $300 billion question: How should we budget for federal lending?

Lending programs create special challenges for federal budgeting. So special, in fact, that the Congressional Budget Office estimates their budget effects two different ways. According to official budget rules, taxpayers will earn more than $200 billion over the next decade from new student loans,
September 29, 2014Donald Marron
: TaxVox

Pressure, Power, and a New View on Cuts

Congress is in recess through the mid-term elections. Read the Daily Deduction each Monday until then. Apple’s new products might not bend , but its tax deals are under some pressure. Later today, the European Union’s European Commission is expected to release its opening decision on Apple’s 1991
September 29, 2014Renu Zaretsky
Business Taxes: Research report

Flow-Through Business Income as a Share of AGI

This Tax Fact documents the increasing share of flow-through business income as a percentage of adjusted gross income (AGI) reported on individual income tax returns. In 2012, net income from sole proprietorships, partnerships, and S corporations totaled nearly $840 billion and accounted for more
September 29, 2014Joseph Rosenberg
Federal Budget and Economy: Research report

The $300 Billion Question: How Should We Budget for Federal Lending Programs?

Student loans, mortgage guarantees, and other lending programs create special challenges for federal budgeting. Under official budget rules, these programs are projected to bring in $200 billion over the next decade. Under an alternative, favored by many analysts, they appear to lose $100 billion.
September 29, 2014Donald Marron