individual taxes

Why Tax and Transfer Programs Often Discourage Work and Savings

Economists and many policymakers generally agree that our tax and transfer systems should promote opportunity, work, saving, and education rather than consumption. The problem is...

February 14, 2013C. Eugene Steuerle

Federal Budget and Economy: TaxVox

Obama’s State of the Union and the Great Deficit Smackdown

House Republicans say they want to balance the budget in a decade with only spending cuts and no tax hikes. In his state of the...

February 12, 2013Howard Gleckman

Campaigns, Proposals, and Reforms: TaxVox

Corporate Tax Reform is on Obama’s Agenda, But Can He Pull it Off?

In what will probably be the usual endless laundry list of State of the Union promises, President Obama is likely to include tax reform, by...

February 12, 2013Howard Gleckman

Individual Taxes: TaxVox

The Immigration Debate: Another Reason We Ought to Separate Work and Family Credits

In the realm of needless complexity, the work and family tax credits for low-income households rank near the top. The problem is especially challenging for...

February 6, 2013Elaine Maag

Campaigns, Proposals, and Reforms: TaxVox

Five Ways the Chasm Between Democratic and Republican Budget Plans is Growing

If their leaders’ public statements are to be believed, the fiscal chasm between the political parties is widening. And it is hard to see how...

January 24, 2013Howard Gleckman

Individual Taxes: TaxVox

How the New Tax Act Affects the Alternative Minimum Tax

In the alphabet soup of Washington, ATRA fixed the AMT , sort of. In English, the newly enacted American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 will...

January 18, 2013Roberton C. Williams

Federal Budget and Economy: TaxVox

Grim Predictions about the Fiscal Cliff II and Deficit Reduction

I spent lunchtime today moderating a thoroughly discouraging Urban Institute panel discussion on the fiscal cliff. The consensus of the speakers—all highly-regarded budget experts—was that...

January 8, 2013Howard Gleckman

Individual Taxes: TaxVox

TPC Tax Calculator Shows What Avoiding Fiscal Cliff Means for Taxpayers

Following Congress’s last minute passage of legislation averting a plunge off the fiscal cliff, TPC has released a new Tax Calculator that lets users examine...

January 3, 2013Roberton C. Williams

Federal Budget and Economy: TaxVox

What the Fiscal Cliff Deal Really Means for Taxes and Spending

Everyone trying to sort out the fiscal cliff deal is getting hopelessly tangled in budget baselines. Are taxes going up? Or are they going down?...

January 3, 2013Howard Gleckman

Federal Budget and Economy: TaxVox

Congress Kicks the Fiscal Can off the Front Stoop

In the end, it looks like Congress isn’t even going to kick the fiscal can down the road. Assuming the House passes the deal agreed...

January 1, 2013Howard Gleckman