Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

Tax — Federal

The Ryan Budget's Tax Cuts: Nearly $6 Trillion in Cost and No Plausible Way to Pay for It
New Tax Policy Center Estimates Show $5.7 Trillion Revenue Loss

"The new budget from House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan proposes a series of dramatic tax cuts that would cost nearly $6 trillion in lost federal revenue over the next decade, and that would provide the lion's share of their benefits to high-income households and corporations. But, despite its stated promise to the contrary, the budget does not include a plausible way to pay for it all.

"Even with sweeping and implausible reductions in tax expenditures for high-income filers, policymakers could not achieve the tax cut goals in the Ryan plan without either adding to the deficit or raising taxes on households with incomes below $200,000 to fill the revenue hole."

More: Ryan Roundup: Everything You Need to Know About Chairman Ryan's Budget

Related:

Topics

Basics

The income tax on individuals and the payroll tax, which is deducted from workers’ wages and used to help finance Social Security and Medicare, each made up about 40 percent of federal revenues in 2010. The federal government also collects revenue from corporate taxes, excise taxes, and other sources.

Policy Basics:
- The Child Tax Credit
- The 2001 and 2003 Tax Cuts
- Where Do Our Federal Tax Dollars Go?
- The Estate Tax
- The Earned Income Tax Credit
- Deficits, Debt, and Interest

Featured Experts

Joel Friedman

Reports | Bio
Robert Greenstein

Reports | Bio
Chye-Ching Huang

Reports | Bio
Chuck Marr

Reports | Bio
Chad Stone

Reports | Bio

The Center analyzes major tax proposals, examining their likely effects on the economy and on the government’s ability to address critical national needs, especially over the long term. We place particular emphasis on the effects of tax proposals on households at different income levels. In addition, we analyze trends in the level of federal revenues, income distribution, and tax burdens.