There is widespread agreement that the income tax needs reform, although little agreement about how to do it. A common thread in most reform proposals is to slash most tax expenditures. A 1973 book by Stanley Surrey made the case that cuts in tax expenditures was the "pathway to tax reform."...
This paper evaluates six options to achieve across-the-board reductions to a group of major exclusions and deductions in the income tax: (1) limiting their tax benefit to a maximum percentage of income, (2) imposing a fixed dollar cap, (3) reducing them by fixed-percentage amount, (4) limiting...
Federal taxpayers choose between itemizing deductions and claiming the standard deduction. Itemizers can claim deductions for state and local income and property taxes paid. (Through 2013, taxpayers may deduct state and local sales taxes paid in lieu of income taxes.) In 2011, 46.6 million...
It is politically implausible to solve entirely America's budget problem on the spending side, Rudolph Penner states in "The International Economy" journal (spring 2013). Taxes will have to increase as well.
The following is the text of a debate that occurred between Rosenthal and Needham at the May meeting of the American Bar Association Section of Taxation in Washington regarding the proper tax treatment of private equity funds and their partners under current law. The introduction should be...
Measuring the size of government is not simple. Standard measures omit important aspects of government action such as the many deductions, credits, and other tax preferences used to influence resource allocation. We argue that many tax preferences are effectively spending. Traditional measures...
This study analyzes the effect of tax reforms on housing prices in selected cities. Using a model that incorporates transaction costs, the study finds (1) the presidents proposed limit on itemized deductions would have a minimal impact on housing prices; (2) eliminating itemized deductions...
Your uncle, Sam, has ignored his chronic health condition let's say he's diabetic for a long time. Then he suddenly has a heart attack, followed by a long, slow painful recovery. As he is recovering, he is feeling good about his health after all, he got though a crisis. But he is not actually...
In a contribution to the New York Times' Room for Debate, Kim Rueben argues if the tax rate for marijuana is too high, people will continue to buy weed from the guy on the street. However, setting the tax rate too low leaves revenue on the table and use might boom.
This document reviews several notable tax proposals in President Obamas Fiscal Year 2014 Budget. These include a 28 percent limit on certain tax expenditures, a cap on tax preferences for retirement savers with high balances, a minimum tax ("Buffett Rule") on high-income taxpayers, alternative...
Pathways to Tax Reform Revisited
There is widespread agreement that the income tax needs reform, although little agreement about how to do it. A common thread in most reform proposals is to slash most tax expenditures. A 1973 book by Stanley Surrey made the case that cuts in tax expenditures was the "pathway to tax reform."...
Evaluating Broad-Based Approaches for Limiting Tax Expenditures
This paper evaluates six options to achieve across-the-board reductions to a group of major exclusions and deductions in the income tax: (1) limiting their tax benefit to a maximum percentage of income, (2) imposing a fixed dollar cap, (3) reducing them by fixed-percentage amount, (4) limiting...
State and Local Tax Deductions
Federal taxpayers choose between itemizing deductions and claiming the standard deduction. Itemizers can claim deductions for state and local income and property taxes paid. (Through 2013, taxpayers may deduct state and local sales taxes paid in lieu of income taxes.) In 2011, 46.6 million...
Does Debt Matter?
It is politically implausible to solve entirely America's budget problem on the spending side, Rudolph Penner states in "The International Economy" journal (spring 2013). Taxes will have to increase as well.
Taxing Private Equity Funds and Their Partners: A Debate on Current Law
The following is the text of a debate that occurred between Rosenthal and Needham at the May meeting of the American Bar Association Section of Taxation in Washington regarding the proper tax treatment of private equity funds and their partners under current law. The introduction should be...
Tax Policy and the Size of Government
Measuring the size of government is not simple. Standard measures omit important aspects of government action such as the many deductions, credits, and other tax preferences used to influence resource allocation. We argue that many tax preferences are effectively spending. Traditional measures...
Tax Reform, Transaction Costs, and Metropolitan Housing in the United States
This study analyzes the effect of tax reforms on housing prices in selected cities. Using a model that incorporates transaction costs, the study finds (1) the presidents proposed limit on itemized deductions would have a minimal impact on housing prices; (2) eliminating itemized deductions...
Don't Let Them Fool You, We Still Have Debt Problems
Your uncle, Sam, has ignored his chronic health condition let's say he's diabetic for a long time. Then he suddenly has a heart attack, followed by a long, slow painful recovery. As he is recovering, he is feeling good about his health after all, he got though a crisis. But he is not actually...
Finding Just the Right Tax Rate
In a contribution to the New York Times' Room for Debate, Kim Rueben argues if the tax rate for marijuana is too high, people will continue to buy weed from the guy on the street. However, setting the tax rate too low leaves revenue on the table and use might boom.
Analysis of Specific Tax Provisions in President Obama's FY2014 Budget
This document reviews several notable tax proposals in President Obamas Fiscal Year 2014 Budget. These include a 28 percent limit on certain tax expenditures, a cap on tax preferences for retirement savers with high balances, a minimum tax ("Buffett Rule") on high-income taxpayers, alternative...