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Off the Charts Blog: The Trickle-Down Economics of Tax Cuts for Multinationals’ Foreign Profits
June 19, 2013
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Higher Tobacco Taxes Can Improve Health and Raise Revenue
June 19, 2013
The President’s proposal to raise the federal excise tax on tobacco products and use the additional revenue to expand preschool education could achieve the dual goals of reducing the number of premature deaths due to smoking and raising an estimated $78 billion over ten years to finance early childhood education. Tobacco taxes are … -
What the 2013 Trustees’ Report Shows About Social Security
June 18, 2013
On May 31, the Social Security Board of Trustees issued its annual report on the program’s financial status.[1] Social Security does not face an immediate crisis, the trustees’ report shows, but it does face a funding shortfall two decades from now that the President and Congress should address reasonably soon so the program … -
House “Budget Transparency” Bill Would Make Budget More Opaque
June 18, 2013
The House Budget Committee may soon consider the proposed “Budget and Accounting Transparency Act” (H.R. 1872), which is identical to a bill that the House passed last year (H.R. 3581). The bill would implement what proponents call “fair-value accounting” for federal credit programs. In fact, the proposal is … -
House Bill Would Artificially Inflate Cost of Federal Credit Programs
Revised June 18, 2013
The House Budget Committee may consider legislation in the near future that would change the federal accounting of direct loans and loan guarantees in ways that would overstate the federal costs of those programs. As a result, the legislation also would overstate total federal spending and deficits. The Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 … -
Academic Research Lacks Consensus on the Impact of State Tax Cuts on Economic Growth
June 17, 2013
Some policymakers, organizations, and individual economists assert that a consensus exists in the academic literature that state tax cuts boost state economies and that state tax increases harm them, but no such consensus exists. Numerous academic studies find no correlation between state tax levels and various measures of state … -
Policy Basics: Non-Defense Discretionary Programs
June 14, 2013
Non-defense discretionary (NDD) programs comprise domestic and international programs outside of national defense that Congress funds on an annual basis. (They exclude “entitlement” programs such as Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.) NDD programs include a broad … -
Benefit Restrictions Beyond Those in Senate Immigration Bill Would Jeopardize Legalization for Many and Risk Severe Hardships for Others
June 14, 2013
The Senate immigration reform bill establishes a long and difficult path to legal status that includes substantial fees and fines and tough restrictions on eligibility for federal assistance for immigrants who newly convert to a legal status. Yet, there will be efforts on the Senate floor to make it considerably more difficult for … -
States Should React Cautiously to Recent Income Tax Growth
June 13, 2013
Recent tax collections are considerably higher than last year in most states and, in many cases, exceed states’ projections when they adopted their current budgets in the spring of 2012. In 32 states for which data are available, state tax collections in the first ten months of fiscal year 2013 were 5.7 percent higher than in the … -
Statement of Nicholas Johnson: North Carolina Senate Tax Plan Would Gut School Funding, Hurt State’s Economy
June 12, 2013
The tax plan that North Carolina’s Senate leaders unveiled yesterday should not be mistaken for tax reform. It is, in reality, a plan to gut North Carolina’s schools, public colleges and universities, infrastructure, and other key state investments that promote long-run prosperity.… -
Chart Book: The Legacy of the Great Recession
Updated June 11, 2013
The United States went through its longest, and by most measures worst economic recession since the Great Depression between December 2007 and June 2009. This chart book will document the course of the economy following that recession against the background of how deep a hole the recession … -
Statement by Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the May Employment Report
June 7, 2013
Today’s jobs report shows that employers continued to add jobs in May, but total employment (private and government combined) remains well below its level at the December 2007 start of the Great Recession (see chart). Job losses were far greater than in other recent recessions, and the … -
A Technical Assessment of SNAP and Medicaid Financial Eligibility Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA)
Revised June 6, 2013
Beginning in 2014, the number of low-income people eligible for Medicaid will expand dramatically. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) sets a national minimum standard for Medicaid eligibility to cover most individuals with incomes below 133 percent of the poverty line.[2] The Supreme Court ruling leaves it up to states to decide whether or not … -
Too Little to Go Around
June 5, 2013
The House Appropriations Committee’s plan to apportion discretionary funding for fiscal year 2014 among its 12 appropriations subcommittees — which it approved on a May 21 party-line vote — would override a key provision of the 2011 Budget Control Act (BCA) and shift tens of billions of dollars from domestic programs to … -
Media Briefing: Understanding the Annual Reports of the Social Security and Medicare Trustees
June 3, 2013
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Medicare Is Not “Bankrupt”
Updated June 3, 2013
Claims by some policymakers that the Medicare program is nearing “bankruptcy” are misleading. Although Medicare faces financing challenges, the program is not on the verge of bankruptcy or ceasing to operate. Such charges represent misunderstanding (or misrepresentation) of Medicare’s finances. … -
Policy Basics: How Many Weeks of Unemployment Compensation Are Available?
Updated June 3, 2013
The unemployment insurance (UI) system helps many people who have lost their jobs by temporarily replacing part of their wages. (See “Introduction to Unemployment Insurance.”) The total number of weeks of benefits available in any particular state depends on the unemployment rate and unemployment insurance laws in the state where the person … -
Statement of Paul Van de Water, Senior Fellow, on the 2013 Medicare Trustees' Report
May 31, 2013
Medicare has grown financially stronger in both the short and long term compared to last year, but it continues to face financing challenges in the long run, today’s new report from its trustees shows. The projected date of insolvency for Medicare’s Hospital Insurance (HI) … -
Statement of Robert Greenstein, President, on the 2013 Social Security Trustees' Report
May 31, 2013
Social Security does not face an immediate crisis, the trustees’ report shows, but it does face a funding shortfall two decades from now that the President and Congress should address in the near future so the program can fully meet its promises. Specifically, the trustees estimate that Social Security will be able to pay full … -
House Agriculture Committee Farm Bill Would Cut Nearly 2 Million People off SNAP
Revised May 16, 2013
On May 15, the House Agriculture Committee passed its 2013 farm bill, H.R. 1947 (the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2013, or FARRM).[1] The bill would cut the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as the Food Stamp Program) by almost $21 billion over the next decade, eliminating food … -
Paul Van de Water Testimony: Health Reform’s Health Insurance Tax
May 9, 2013
Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Hahn, and members of the subcommittee, I appreciate the invitation to appear before you today. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) will extend health insurance coverage to 27 million people and help assure that Americans have access to affordable coverage. And it will do so in a fiscally responsible way. In … -
Tax Credits for Lower-Income Working Families Help 21 Million Mothers
May 9, 2013
Two working-family tax credits — the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC) — have proven to be powerful tools for reducing children's poverty and advancing their long-term well-being.[1] About 21 million low- and moderate-income working mothers received either the EITC or the low-income portion of the CTC in … -
Medicaid Per Capita Cap Would Shift Costs to States and Undermine Key Part of Health Reform
May 8, 2013
Two prominent congressional Republicans have proposed placing a “per capita cap” on federal Medicaid funding, under which the federal government would no longer cover a fixed share of each state’s overall Medicaid costs but instead would limit each state to a fixed dollar amount per beneficiary.[1] The per capita cap … -
A Closer Look at Who Benefits from SNAP: State-by-State Fact Sheets
Updated May 8, 2013
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as food stamps) is the nation’s most important anti-hunger program, reaching nearly 48 million people nationwide in 2012 alone. These fact sheets provide state-by-state data on who participates in the SNAP program, the benefits they receive, and SNAP’s role in strengthening … -
Policy Basics: Introduction to Medicaid
Updated May 8, 2013
What Is Medicaid? Created by Congress in 1965, Medicaid is a public insurance program that provides health coverage to low-income families and individuals, including children, parents, pregnant women, seniors, and people with disabilities. Medicaid is funded jointly by the federal government and … -
Statement by Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on the April Employment Report
May 3, 2013
Today’s jobs report shows that labor markets still bear the scars of the Great Recession despite 38 straight months of private-sector job growth and a drop in the unemployment rate from 7.9 percent to 7.5 percent since January. Unemployment remains stubbornly high and many people who would likely have a … -
Proposed Balanced Budget Amendment is Extreme by International Standards
Revised May 3, 2013
Some proponents of a constitutional balanced budget amendment have argued that other developed countries’ constitutions require balanced budgets, suggesting that such a requirement for the federal government would therefore be appropriate.[2] In reality, however, no European country — not even Germany or Switzerland, which are … -
Online Services for Key Low-Income Benefit Programs
Revised May 1, 2013
Virtually all states have made basic program information on the five main state-administered low-income benefit programs — SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as Food Stamps), Medicaid, CHIP (Children’s Health Insurance Program), TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families), and child care assistance … -
SNAP Benefits Will Be Cut for All Participants in November 2013
Revised May 1, 2013
The 2009 Recovery Act’s temporary boost to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits is scheduled to end on November 1, 2013, resulting in a benefit cut for every SNAP household. For families of three, the cut likely will be $20 to $25 a month — $240 to $300 a year. That’s a serious loss, … -
SNAP Online: A Review of State Government SNAP Websites
Updated May 1, 2013
All states make information regarding the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the Food Stamp Program, [1] including their applications, state policy manuals or regulations, and general program information, available to the public via the Internet.[2] The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities reviewed all the states' web pages to determine what information … -
Reducing Overpayments in the Earned Income Tax Credit
April 30, 2013
A recent report from the Treasury Department’s Inspector General raised the issue of overpayments in the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC).[1] The EITC, a tax credit for low- and moderate-income working families that has been shown to increase work, lower welfare receipt, and reduce poverty, has a significant error rate that needs … -
Obama Proposal to Limit Tax Breaks for High-Income Households Would Reduce Total Charitable Contributions By a Modest 1.6 to 3.0 Percent
Revised April 30, 2013
The President’s fiscal year 2014 budget includes a proposal from previous Obama budgets to limit the tax subsidies that affluent Americans take for deductible expenses and some other tax expenditures. After the President made this proposal in previous budgets, some critics contended it would lead to substantial reductions in … -
Chained CPI Proposal Would Cut Social Security Retirement Benefits by About 2 Percent, on Average
April 23, 2013
The President’s new budget proposes to use the chained Consumer Price Index (CPI) for computing cost-of-living adjustments in Social Security and certain other federal benefits, as well as for indexing key parameters of the tax code.[1] The effect of this proposal on Social Security retirement benefits would vary by a … -
Commentary: Think Obama’s Medicare Savings Aren’t Significant? Take a Closer Look.
April 23, 2013
Commentators, pundits, and some policymakers routinely say that while the President’s new budget takes useful steps to reduce the cost of health care programs, the steps are small and rather timid. This judgment seems rooted in the belief that the budget’s changes affecting Medicare beneficiaries, which save a modest $64 … -
Policy Basics: State Supermajority Rules to Raise Revenues
April 22, 2013
Legislatures in most states (34 states plus the District of Columbia) can approve tax bills with a simple majority vote in each house, the same margin required for practically every other bill. In the other 16 states, some or all tax bills require a supermajority vote of each house (plus the … -
The Earned Income Tax Credit and Refundable Child Tax Credit in Rural America
April 19, 2013
In 2010, 22.9 percent of rural tax filers — compared with 20 percent of filers nationwide — claimed the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), according to research by the Brookings Institution and the Carsey Institute.[1] This difference reflects rural areas’ generally lower wage levels. The EITC brought $10.5 billion in benefits to … -
Strategies to Address the State Tax Volatility Problem
April 18, 2013
State revenues plummet in recessions, just when states can least afford the loss. Some proposals to address this flaw in state tax systems would change the systems’ structure — for instance, by replacing state personal income taxes with sales taxes — but wouldn’t solve the problem and would exacerbate others in … -
Chart Book: Top Ten Tax Charts
Updated April 18, 2013
In recognition of Tax Day, we’ve collected our top ten charts related to federal taxes. Together, they provide useful context for ongoing debates about how to reduce deficits and reform the tax code. Our first chart reminds us what taxes pay for. National defense, Social Security, and major health programs like Medicare and Medicaid account for … -
Policy Basics: Deficits, Debt, and Interest
Updated April 18, 2013
Three important budget concepts — deficits (or surpluses), debt, and interest — are often misunderstood. Deficits (or Surpluses) For any given year, the federal budget deficit is the amount of money the federal government spends (also known as outlays) minus the amount of money it … -
Myths and Realities about the Estate Tax
Revised April 16, 2013
The estate tax is a tax on property (cash, real estate, stock, or other assets) transferred from deceased persons to their heirs. Only the wealthiest estates in the country pay the tax because it is levied only on the portion of an estate’s value that exceeds a specified exemption level, currently $5.25 million per person … -
Policy Basics: Tax Exemptions, Deductions, and Credits
Updated April 16, 2013
Tax exemptions, deductions, and credits all can reduce the amount of taxes that a person owes. Some of these tax benefits are intended to reflect a person’s ability to pay tax; the Child Tax Credit, for example, recognizes the costs of raising children. Other tax benefits, such as the deductions for charitable donations and home mortgage interest payments, … -
Policy Basics: Federal Payroll Taxes
Updated April 15, 2013
The federal government levies payroll taxes primarily on wages and self-employment income and uses most of the revenue to fund Social Security, Medicare, and other social insurance benefits. Federal payroll taxes generated $845 billion in 2012, or 35 percent of all federal revenues (see “Policy Basics: Where Do Federal Tax Revenues Come From?”). … -
Policy Basics: Marginal and Average Tax Rates
Updated April 15, 2013
Misunderstandings about two different types of tax rates often create confusion in discussions about taxes. A taxpayer’s average tax rate (or effective tax rate) is the share of income that he or she pays in taxes. By contrast, a taxpayer’s marginal tax rate is the tax rate imposed on his or her last dollar of income. Taxpayers’ average tax rates … -
Policy Basics: Where Do Federal Tax Revenues Come From?
Revised April 12, 2013
In fiscal year 2012, the federal government spent $3.5 trillion on the services it provides, such as national defense, health care programs like Medicare and Medicaid, Social Security benefits for the elderly and disabled, and investments in infrastructure and education, in addition to interest on … -
Policy Basics: Where Do Our Federal Tax Dollars Go?
Revised April 12, 2013
The federal government collects taxes to finance various public services. As policymakers and citizens weigh key decisions about revenues and expenditures, it is instructive to examine what the government does with the money it collects. In fiscal year 2012, the federal government spent $3.5 … -
Policy Basics: Where Do Our State Tax Dollars Go?
Updated April 12, 2013
With state revenues still deeply damaged by the recession, policymakers continue to confront major choices about how to pay for important services now and in the future. To inform this crucial decision making, it is useful to examine where state tax dollars go as well as changing trends over time.… -
President Obama’s Deficit-Reduction Package and Other Proposals in the 2014 Budget
April 11, 2013
The President’s 2014 budget is presented in two parts. One part includes the package of deficit- reduction policies that the President included in his last offer to Speaker Boehner during the “fiscal cliff” negotiations in December 2012. This package would reduce the deficit by $1.8 trillion over the next decade … -
Federal Income Taxes on Middle-Income Families Remain Near Historic Lows
Revised April 11, 2013
Federal taxes on middle-income Americans are near historic lows,[1] according to the latest available data. That’s true both for federal income taxes and total federal taxes.[2] Income taxes: A family of four in the exact middle of the income spectrum will pay only 5.3 percent of its 2013 income in federal income taxes next year, according to a new analysis by … -
The Impact of the Sequester on WIC
Revised April 11, 2013
WIC — the highly effective nutrition program that serves roughly 9 million low-income women and children — has been battered by funding uncertainty for the last six months as Congress grappled with how to accomplish deficit reduction over the coming decade. The WIC funding level recently enacted for the remainder of the … -
Statement by Robert Greenstein, President, on President Obama’s FY 2014 Budget
April 10, 2013
President Obama’s budget includes a $1.8 trillion deficit reduction package that reflects his last offer to Speaker Boehner during their budget talks in December. The new budget — like the President’s offer — represents a substantial compromise on the President’s part; compared to the President’s original offer to the …
