Taxes

The Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) recently released data on taxes paid at various levels of income, indicating the federal tax system is progressive, consistent with similar analysis by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The JCT found that the bottom 50 percent of taxpayers faced an

This week’s map looks at state and local sales tax collections per capita. Forty-five states and the District of Columbia have state-levied sales taxes. Five states—Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon—do not collect sales taxes at the state level, although Alaska allows localities to impose local sales taxes. In fiscal year (FY) 2018, the highest state

Investing can be an excellent way to build your wealth without having to do much work. Perhaps that’s why so many Americans do it. According to the Pew Research Center, 52% of American families are in some way invested in the stock market – mostly through 401(k)s and retirement accounts – and 14% directly invested

Talking about money with anyone can be awkward, but what about talking with your family? Those conversations hit much closer to home, making it even more difficult to talk with your loved ones about your financial situation. Why does it matter? Couldn’t you just avoid talking about your taxes with your family? Well, you could.

Every year, you learn something new when you file your taxes. Hopefully, every time you figure out how to do it more efficiently. Maybe you discover a new way to file that takes less time. Perhaps you maximize your tax refund or determine ways in which you will owe less the next time around. Whether

You paid taxes throughout your entire working life, whether you were worked a full-time job with a company or you were self-employed. Now that you’re retired, the kinds of taxes you’ll be paying are going to change. If you’re getting ready to retire, here are the taxes you may have to pay. Income Taxes When

Generally, people don’t like paying taxes. When their paycheck comes, they see that a large amount of money is taken out and they wonder where it’s all going. And then during tax time, they might get frustrated because they come to find out they owe the government even more money. However, as annoying as paying

Table of Contents Key Findings The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act made temporary structural changes to the federal tax code to enhance business liquidity, including more generous treatment of net operating losses and business interest expenses. Under the CARES Act’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), businesses that receive loan forgiveness are not required

President Joe Biden’s proposal to raise the federal corporate income tax rate to 28 percent would increase the combined average top tax rate on corporate income to 32.4 percent, highest in the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), reducing U.S. competitiveness and long-run economic growth. While the focus has been on the federal rate,

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Table of Contents Executive Summary Income tax repeal is on the agenda in West Virginia, with Governor Jim Justice (R) and Republicans in both the House and Senate releasing plans for dramatically lowering or eliminating the state’s individual income tax. Despite their shared aims, these plans represent vastly different approaches. They are not even aligned

Excise taxes are commonly employed to deter consumption or internalize societal costs, but in West Virginia, Gov. Jim Justice (R) is proposing to increase the excise tax on soft drinks to pay for part of an income tax reform. He’s not alone in considering ways to raise revenue as state lawmakers look to a time

Over the last few years, concerns have been raised that the existing international tax system does not properly capture the digitalization of the economy. Under current international tax rules, multinationals generally pay corporate income tax where production occurs rather than where consumers or, specifically for the digital sector, users are located. However, some argue that

A recent working paper by economists at the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) shows that not all taxes are created equal—progressive taxes on labor income and taxes on capital income would have a negative impact on the economy, capital investment, and jobs, especially when compared to flatter taxes on labor income. Policymakers should consider these results

Table of Contents Chairman Sanders, Ranking Member Graham, and members of the Committee. Thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today. There is no objective standard for what defines “fair share”; it is a purely subjective concept. But there are facts, which are objective, and the facts suggest that the U.S. tax and

In November 2020, the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) released its annual report on expenditures in the tax code, showing a total of almost $1.8 trillion in 2020, up from $1.5 trillion in 2018. Much of that roughly $1.8 trillion was due to tax relief provided by the CARES Act—and reflect the policy choice to

This week’s map looks at another barrier to business and consumer recovery: state capital stock taxes. These taxes impair economic growth in the best of times, but during an economic contraction they are particularly harmful to businesses struggling to remain viable. As many businesses may need time to return to profitability after the pandemic crisis, states should prioritize reducing reliance

During the pandemic, implementation issues in some states resulted in underwithholding income tax due on enhanced unemployment benefits, and surprise tax bills, for many jobless workers. For instance, in California, when workers opted to withhold 10 percent of their unemployment compensation for taxes, that only applied to state benefits and not enhanced federal benefits. The

After Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act last week, infrastructure spending—and its funding—is taking center stage. For example, the federal excise tax rate on motor fuels has not been changed since 1993, and the tax has not raised sufficient revenue to cover expenditures since 2008. Several states also are in this position and are

Democratic members of Congress are interested in changing tax rules for foreign earnings of U.S. multinational companies. They claim the current rules incentivize U.S. businesses to outsource and offshore what would otherwise be U.S. jobs and investment. However, closer inspection shows these claims do not fit with the way the rules have been working. Some