Tax — Federal Archive
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Republican Proposal To Pay For Payroll Tax Extension Would Increase Already Severe Cuts In Discretionary Programs
December 2, 2011
The plan of Senate Republican leaders to extend and expand payroll tax relief includes a smaller payroll tax cut and would provide less than half of the economic boost of the Democratic alternative. The plan claims to offset the costs of its payroll tax cut by freezing federal employee pay and cutting federal employment, but that claim is … -
Amash Constitutional Spending Cap Would Radically Shrink Federal Budget
November 28, 2011
Rep. Justin Amash (R-MI) has introduced an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would impose an extraordinarily severe cap on federal spending. The amendment would force radical shrinkage of the federal government, taking the nation down the road toward antigovernment activist Grover Norquist's vision of "starving the beast." If … -
Latest Democratic Offer Includes Further Compromise,
Matches Overall Numbers of Toomey Proposal;
Republicans Reject It
November 18, 2011
Democratic members of the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction (called by some the Supercommittee) submitted an offer last Friday in response to a plan put forward earlier in the week by Senator Pat Toomey and other Joint Committee Republicans. Various media institutions reported today that this latest Democratic … -
GOP Tax Proposal Risks a Substantial Tax Shift From High-Income Households to Low- and Middle-Income Households
November 18, 2011
The Toomey plan from Republican negotiators on the deficit-reduction "supercommittee" would produce only a modest increase in revenues — about $300 billion over ten years, relative to a baseline that assumes Congress extends all of the Bush tax cuts. But it would accomplish this through what appears to be … -
Testimony: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, at Hearing on “Could Tax Reform Boost Business Investment and Job Creation”
November 17, 2011
Chairman Casey, Vice Chairman Brady, and other members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to testify before this committee, which has been special to me since I first worked on the JEC staff in 1989. In my testimony, I want to make one overarching point about the question raised by the title of this hearing, … -
Plan From Toomey, Other Republicans Not a First Step Toward Balanced Deficit Reduction
November 10, 2011
Senator Pat Toomey and other Republicans on the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction (“Supercommittee”) portray their new offer to raise close to $300 billion in revenues (under a plan to reduce deficits by about $1.5 trillion over ten years) as a significant concession, and some observers have suggested it represents a … -
Poverty and Financial Distress Would Have Been Substantially Worse in 2010 Without Government Action, New Census Data Show
November 7, 2011
Six temporary federal initiatives enacted in 2009 and 2010 to bolster the economy by lifting consumers’ incomes and purchases kept nearly 7 million Americans out of poverty in 2010, under an alternative measure of poverty that takes into account the impact of government benefit programs and taxes. These initiatives — three … -
Repeal of Contractor Withholding Provision Would Encourage
Tax Abuse
October 26, 2011
The House will vote tomorrow on whether to repeal a 2006 law designed to fight tax abuse by private contractors for federal, state, or local governments. Congress and President George W. Bush enacted the 2006 law after the Government Accountability Office (GAO) uncovered widespread tax abuse by government contractors. … -
Video: A Discussion with Jared Bernstein and Chuck Marr on Tax Repatriation
October 20, 2011
Congress is considering a temporary "repatriation tax holiday" that would allow corporations to bring their overseas profits back to the United States at a fraction of the normal corporate tax rate. Proponents claim that corporations would then invest these earnings in the United States, but the evidence shows that a tax holiday would fail to boost the economy while increasing deficits and encouraging companies to locate jobs and future investments overseas.
In this video, Jared Bernstein and Chuck Marr discuss the proposal and its likely harmful impact.
Duration: 7:19
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Media Briefing: The Effects of a Repatriation Tax Holiday
October 13, 2011
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities held a conference call briefing to discuss the impacts of a heavily lobbied proposal to allow U.S.-based multinational companies to pay sharply lower taxes on the profits they return from overseas. This is popularly known as a “repatriation tax holiday.”
Speakers will included Edward Kleinbard, former Chief of Staff of the non-partisan Congressional Joint Committee on Taxation and now Professor of Law at the University of Southern California and the author of a new important study that bears on these issues; Chuck Marr, the Center’s Director of Federal Tax Policy; and Center President Robert Greenstein, who will serve as moderator.Duration: 16:02
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Repatriation Tax Holiday Would Increase Deficits and Push Investment Overseas
October 12, 2011
Despite proponents' claims to the contrary, a proposal to enact a second tax holiday for the profits that U.S.-based multinational corporations bring back to the United States from foreign accounts would cost tens of billions of dollars in federal revenue — boosting deficits and debt – while not achieving its proponents' promise of … -
“Supercommittee” Should Develop Balanced Package of Tax Increases and Spending Cuts
September 27, 2011
The new congressional committee on deficit reduction (the so-called "supercommittee") not only can consider revenue increases, but must consider them — as well as spending cuts — if it's going to produce a balanced plan. [1] There are five main reasons why. Spending cuts alone can't do the job. … -
Testimony: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, on Policy Prescriptions for the Economy
September 15, 2011
Chairman Conrad, Senator Sessions, and other members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to testify today on policy prescriptions for the economy. To use the medical analogy in the title of this hearing, the U.S. economy is experiencing a long and difficult recovery from a severe acute illness — the 2007-2009 financial … -
Letting Payroll Tax Cut Expire Would Shrink Worker Paychecks and Damage Weak Economy
September 7, 2011
Failure by Congress to extend the temporary payroll tax cut enacted last December would reduce all paychecks starting on January 1, withdrawing needed support from the still-weak economy. The measure, part of the tax cut-unemployment insurance deal between President Obama and Republican leaders, reduces the employee share of the Social … -
Statement: Robert Greenstein, President, on New Debt Ceiling Agreement
Updated August 2, 2011
The new debt ceiling agreement will achieve the essential goal of avoiding a potentially catastrophic default in the days ahead. But to say that the deal is likely to lead to highly unbalanced results would be an understatement. The deal places the nation on a disturbing policy course and sets what may become important precedents that are cause … -
Contrary to Speaker Boehner’s Claim, Budget Deal’s “Supercommittee” Can Consider Revenue Increases
August 1, 2011
Speaker of the House John Boehner erroneously claims that the legislation implementing the new debt limit agreement does not allow the joint congressional committee it establishes to propose revenue increases to help reduce deficits. The legislation does no such thing. Rather, it is the speaker's adamant opposition to … -
Testimony: Robert Greenstein, President, on “Deficit Reduction: A Review of Key Issues”
July 26, 2011
Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee, thank you for the invitation to testify here today. As you well know, the nation is on an unsustainable fiscal course, and substantial changes in policy will be needed to right the ship. As a number of bipartisan commission have recommended over the past year, policymakers should aim … -
Tax Holiday for Overseas Corporate Profits Would Increase Deficits, Fail to Boost the Economy, and Ultimately Shift More Investment and Jobs Overseas
Updated June 23, 2011
Momentum is growing in Congress behind legislation to enact another “repatriation tax holiday” that allows multinational corporations to bring profits held overseas back to the United States and pay tax on them at a rate of only about 5 percent (rather than the normal tax rate on corporate profits). But the … -
Testimony: Chad Stone, Chief Economist, Before the Joint Economic Committee
June 21, 2011
Vice Chairman Brady and other members of the Committee, thank you for inviting me to testify. I feel especially privileged to be appearing as a witness before the Joint Economic Committee, which together with the President's Council of Economic Advisers — both established by the Employment Act of 1946 — … -
New Estate Tax Rules Should Expire After 2012
May 26, 2011
The tax-cut compromise enacted in December established estate tax rules for 2011 and 2012 that are considerably weaker than those in effect in 2009, the last year before the tax temporarily expired in 2010. The new rules will cost about $23 billion more than reinstating the 2009 rules over the same two years, yet will benefit … -
Under House Budget, “Tax Reform” Places Top Priority on High-Income Tax Cuts and Ignores Deficit Reduction
Updated May 26, 2011
The tax proposals in the budget that the House approved on April 15 place a top priority on cutting taxes for high-income people, while doing nothing to reduce budget deficits, themselves. [1] In addition to making the Bush tax cuts permanent and continuing to provide relief from the Alternative Minimum Tax … -
Economic Downturn and Bush Policies Continue to Drive Large Projected Deficits
May 10, 2011
We have since updated this paper. To view the new paper, click here. Some lawmakers, pundits, and others continue to say that President George W. Bush’s policies did not drive the projected federal deficits of the coming decade — that, instead, it was the policies of President Obama and Congress in 2009 and 2010. But, the fact remains: the … -
Testimony: Paul Van de Water, Senior Fellow, on Budget Enforcement Mechanisms
May 4, 2011
Mr. Chairman, Senator Hatch, and members of the committee, I appreciate the invitation to appear before you today. The federal budget is on an unsustainable path. If we continue current policies — including a further extension of the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts and AMT relief — deficits will remain high throughout the … -
Testimony: Aviva Aron-Dine on the Distribution of Tax Burdens and the Fairness of the Tax System
May 3, 2011
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Statement of Robert Greenstein, President, on Chairman Ryan’s Budget Plan
Updated April 20, 2011
Chairman Ryan’s sweeping budget plan has been labeled “courageous,” but it’s a cowardly budget in a crucial respect. It proposes a dramatic reverse-Robin-Hood approach that gets the lion’s share of its budget cuts from programs for low-income Americans — the politically and economically weakest group in … -
Earned Income Tax Credit Overpayment and Error Issues
Updated April 19, 2011
The federal Earned Income Tax Credit, a tax credit for low- and moderate-income working families, has been widely hailed for its success in increasing work and lowering welfare receipt, reducing poverty, and making the tax code fairer. (See the box below.) Census data indicate that the credit lifted 6.6 million individuals out of poverty in 2009, including more than 3 million children. The EITC lifts more children out of poverty than any other program.
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A Hand Up: How State Earned Income Tax Credits Help Working Families Escape Poverty in 2011
April 18, 2011
Summary The federal Earned Income Tax Credit, which began in 1975 and has been expanded several times since then, is often heralded as the most effective anti-poverty program in the United States, particularly for children in working families. In 2009 alone, it lifted 6.5 million working families, including 3.3 million children, out … -
Reforming Tax Expenditures Can Reduce Deficits While Making the Tax Code More Efficient and Equitable
April 15, 2011
With the federal budget on an unsustainable path, our country’s fiscal problems need to be addressed in a way that is both effective and equitable. Scaling back and reforming “tax expenditures” — spending that is delivered through the tax code rather than government programs — should be an important part … -
Statement: Robert Greenstein on President Obama's Deficit-Reduction Plan
April 13, 2011
President Obama made an important contribution today to efforts to address the nation’s long-term fiscal problems, proposing a plan to reduce deficits by about $4 trillion over the next 12 years and meet the essential goal of stabilizing the national debt so that it rises no faster than … -
Tax Foundation Figures Do Not Represent Typical Households’ Tax Burdens
April 12, 2011
This report has been updated. Click here for the updated analysis. Executive Summary Each year, the Tax Foundation releases a report projecting “Tax Freedom Day,” which it describes as the day when Americans will have “earned enough money to pay this year’s tax obligations at the federal, state, and local levels.” [1] The Tax … -
Ryan Plan’s “Path to Prosperity” Is Just for the Wealthy
April 6, 2011
House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan’s name for his budget — “The Path to Prosperity” — is a cruel joke. One of this nation’s core beliefs is that if you work hard and act responsibly, you can get ahead, raise a family, and have a decent life. That was never more true than in the three decades after World War II, when the path to … -
Republican Study Committee Bill Would Require Deepest Cuts in Programs for the Poor in U.S. History
April 5, 2011
Legislation unveiled last month by the Republican Study Committee, the powerful caucus that includes 176 House Republican members, would require the most severe cuts in programs for the poor in the nation’s history. Introduced by RSC Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH), Tim Scott (R-SC), and RSC Budget and Spending Task Force Chair … -
Ryan’s Cowardly Budget
April 5, 2011
The Center has just issued a statement on House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan’s budget plan and a brief analysis showing that the plan would get about two-thirds of its more than $4 trillion in budget cuts over 10 years from programs that serve people of limited means. . -
Off the Charts Blog Post: Ryan’s Rx for Medicaid Means Millions More Uninsured or Underinsured Seniors, People with Disabilities, and Children
April 4, 2011
House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI) will unveil a budget tomorrow that would cut Medicaid by as much as $1 trillion over the next 10 years and convert it into a block grant. He and others will likely claim that these changes would merely rein in “out-of-control” Medicaid costs while letting states stretch their reduced federal … -
Statement by Robert Greenstein on Senate Republican Leaders’ Proposed Balanced Budget Amendment
March 31, 2011
The balanced budget amendment to the Constitution that Senate Republican leaders unveiled today is the most radical major fiscal policy proposal in decades. It would require a balanced budget every year regardless of the state of the economy, an exceedingly unwise requirement that most … -
Media Briefing: Principles and Cautions for Deficit Reduction
March 24, 2011
Robert Greenstein, President, and James R. Horney, Vice President for Fiscal Policy discuss a major new report, which suggests a framework for a comprehensive deficit reduction package, discusses the appropriate mix of tax and program savings for it, recommends some important ways to achieve those savings, explains the effects that such a package should have on poverty and inequality, and highlights some misguided proposals that policymakers should avoid.
Duration: 20:13
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A Framework for Deficit Reduction: Principles and Cautions
March 24, 2011
The nation is on an unsustainable fiscal course, and policymakers need to make major changes in policy. As a number of bipartisan panels have recommended over the past year, policymakers should aim to stabilize the debt as a share of the economy (the Gross Domestic Product) so the debt does not rise relentlessly as a share of the … -
Testimony of Robert Greenstein, President, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Before the Senate Committee on Budget
March 9, 2011
Chairman Conrad, Ranking Member Sessions and members of the Budget Committee, thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today to discuss tax expenditures, tax reform, and what role they might play in deficit reduction. I am Robert Greenstein, president of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a policy institute … -
House Bill Means Fewer Children in Head Start, Less Help for Students to Attend College, Less Job Training, and Less Funding for Clean Water
Updated March 1, 2011
Some 157,000 at-risk children up to age 5 could lose education, health, nutrition, and other services under Head Start, while funds for Pell Grants that help students go to college would fall by nearly 25 percent, under a bill passed by the House that would cut current-year non-security discretionary funding by an average of 14.3 percent.… -
House GOP Plan Cuts Non-Security Discretionary Programs 15 Percent Through End of Fiscal Year
February 4, 2011
House Republican leaders announced yesterday the next steps in their plan to impose deep cuts in non-security discretionary (annually appropriated) programs. Under the plan, non-security programs would shrink, on average, by 15.4 percent below current funding under the continuing resolution (which expires on March 4) and 19.4 percent below what President Obama proposed … -
Media Briefing: The Corker-McCaskill Proposal to Cap Total Federal Spending: Is It Sound Policy?
February 1, 2011
Executive Director, Robert Greenstein, and Senior Fellow, Paul Van de Water discuss the “Commitment to American Prosperity Act” that would set a binding spending cap of 20.6% of the Gross Domestic Product.
Duration: 16:59
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Corker-McCaskill Spending Cap Doesn’t Account for Basic Changes in Society and Government
February 1, 2011
The proposal from Senators Bob Corker (R-TN) and Claire McCaskill (D-MO) to limit total federal spending to 20.6 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), the average from 1970 to 2008, would force draconian cuts in Social Security, Medicare, and many other programs while making it harder for the nation to recover from recession. That’s because the proposal, which … -
Federal Debt on Unsustainable Path Under Current Policies
January 31, 2011
The latest projections from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) confirm what we already knew: the federal budget is on an unsustainable path. [1] If we continue current policies — including a further extension of the Bush tax cuts, which policymakers recently extended through 2012 — deficits will remain … -
Podcast: The Impact of the New Budget Rules in the U.S. House of Representatives
January 11, 2011
Jim Horney, the Center’s Director of Federal Fiscal Policy, discusses the new budget rules in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Duration: 3:47
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Statement of Robert Greenstein, Executive Director, on the New House Budget Rules
January 5, 2011
Today’s vote by the new House majority to change the chamber’s rules, making it easier to pass tax cuts that increase the deficit, contradicts many Republican members’ anti-deficit rhetoric and marks a significant step away from fiscal discipline and toward the kind of rules that helped pave the way for the return of large deficits in the years … -
Despite Deep Recession and High Unemployment, Government Efforts — Including the Recovery Act — Prevented Poverty from Rising in 2009, New Census Data Show
January 5, 2011
Despite a deep recession, very high unemployment, and widespread hardship, a combination of existing safety net programs and temporary expansions in them enacted in 2009 all but prevented a rise in the poverty rate that year, according to a Center analysis of new poverty data the U.S. Census Bureau released this week that … -
House Republican Rule Changes Pave the Way For Major Deficit-Increasing Tax Cuts, Despite Anti-Deficit Rhetoric
Updated January 5, 2011
House Republican leaders yesterday unveiled major changes to House procedural rules that are clearly designed to pave the way for more deficit-increasing tax cuts in the next two years. These rules stand in sharp contrast to the strong anti-deficit rhetoric that many Republicans used on the campaign trail this fall. While …
