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| Articles about Tax Foundation |
| Tax Foundation Hosts Panel on Tax Reform in New Orleans on Thursday | | 2008-07-21 23:00:00 | | State legislators from all over the country are gathering in New Orleans this week for the NCSL conference, and the Tax Foundation will be hosting a breakfast event about creating competitive tax climates in the states. If you are in New Orleans, consider attending!Creating a Competitive Tax Climate in Your StateTax Foundation Breakfast SessionThursday, July 24, 20088:00 - 9:45 amHilton New Orleans Riverside - Windsor RoomHow tax policy can be crafted to makeyour state more competitive, bothregionally and internationallyHow your state ranks in tax burdenand business tax climateMajor issues in tax administrationand tax reformCome join these experts as they discuss their latest findings:Josh Barro (Tax Foundation) - State Business Tax Climate IndexBeth Cooley (Council on State Taxation) - Tax administration and nexus issuesJim Brandt (President, Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana)Kevin Kane (President, Pelican Institute for Public Policy) Moderated by Scott Hodge, President, Ta | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Wall Street Journal Echoes Tax Foundation Analysis of New IRS Income Data | | 2008-07-20 23:00:00 | | Today's Wall Street Journal carries an editorial that echoes a recent Tax Foundation Fiscal Fact. From the editorial, "Their Fair Share":Washington is teeing up "the rich" for a big tax hike next year, as a way to make them "pay their fair share." Well, the latest IRS data have arrived on who paid what share of income taxes in 2006, and it's going to be hard for the rich to pay any more than they already do. . . .Aha, we are told: The rich paid more taxes because they made a greater share of the money. That is true. The top 1% earned 22% of all reported income. But they also paid a share of taxes not far from double their share of income. In other words, the tax code is already steeply progressive.Tax Foundation Fiscal Fact No. 135, "Summary of Latest Federal Individual Income Tax Data," explains that upper-income taxpayers pay federal income taxes at a rate disproportionate to their share of the nation's income. The Fiscal Fact includes det | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | New Tax Foundation Report Looks at County and City Income Taxes | | 2008-07-13 23:00:00 | | Beginning July 1, 2008, workers in Philadelphia will see a little bit more in their paychecks. That day marks the second reduction within a year in that city's wage tax imposed on both residential and nonresidential workers in Philadelphia, although it remains the highest in the nation. The new rates are 3.98% for residents (down from 4.219% in early 2008 and 4.26% in 2007) and (precise to the ten-thousandth digit) 3.5392% for nonresidents (down from 3.7242% in early 2008 and 3.7557% in 2007). Thus, a resident who earns $1,000 a week will keep $124 more per year; a nonresident earning that much will keep an additional $96. Local income or wage taxes can be a part of a sound tax system, particularly if revenue is used to reduce other taxes that may do more economic harm. Using local income tax revenue to reduce corporate income taxes or property taxes can still produce a friendly tax climate. However, local-level taxes on wages and income are clustering in areas with poor busin | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
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| Thursday Video: Tax Foundation at FreedomFest 2008 | | 2008-07-09 23:00:00 | | Today's Thursday video is a bit different—a quick hello from State Relations Manager Tonya Barr and Tax Counsel Joe Henchman from the Tax Foundation booth at FreedomFest 2008 in Las Vegas, Nevada.Throughout the year, the Tax Foundation appears at conferences and events with educational materials and ready to answer questions about sound tax policy. Here in Las Vegas, over a thousand attendees have gathered for the four-day conference, and we hope to reach many of them with some new outreach pieces! Check out the short 1-1/2 minute video for more information. | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Job Openings at the Tax Foundation | | 2008-06-26 23:00:00 | | The Tax Foundation is in search of a development manager able to start immediately. The development manager works closely with the director of development managing the majority of fundraising programs, including communicating with current and potential donors, preparing and revising foundation grant proposals and corporate invoices, maintaining records and donor database, and supervising the development associate with gift inputs.The candidate must have a commitment to free-market principles, be able to work both independently and as a team player, possess strong writing and communication skills, and be able to prioritize effectively. A B.A. or B.S. degree from an accredited university or college is preferred. This is not an entry level job, and salary is commensurate with experience. Fundraising experience is a plus.Click here for more information. Please email resume and cover letter to Kim Jorns at Jorns@taxfoundation.org with "Development Position" in the e-mail subject l | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Foundation Testifies before Congress on Physical Presence for Business Taxation | | 2008-06-23 23:00:00 | | In testimony submitted today to the Commercial and Administrative Law Subcommittee of the U.S. House Judiciary Committee, Tax Foundation Tax Counsel Joseph Henchman outlined the importance of a consistent and predictable presence-based standard for business taxation."Today, with new technologies, even the smallest businesses can sell their products and services in all fifty states through the Internet and through the mail," Henchman wrote in his testimony. "If such sales can now expose these businesses to tax compliance and liability risks in states where they merely have customers, they will be less likely to expand their reach into those states."The Tax Foundation testimony made two primary points: (1) the physical presence standard limits destructive and likely unconstitutional state efforts to export tax burdens, efforts that stifle interstate commerce and harm economic growth; and (2) a uniform physical presence standard would decrease transaction costs for int | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
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| Tax Foundation Welcomes New Staff | | 2008-06-19 23:00:00 | | Mark Robyn first came to the Tax Foundation in September 2007 as an intern. During his internship he helped with the development of certain areas of the Tax Foundation's federal income tax computer simulation, including the AMT, the earned income tax credit, and the child tax credit. He also helped gather data for the most recent publication of the "Facts and Figures" state rankings booklet. Mark's outstanding work during his internship earned him a permanent position as a Tax Foundation analyst and programmer. He holds a B.S. in applied mathematics from Geneva College. Josh Barro recently joined the Tax Foundation as a staff economist. His focus is state and local tax policy, including the annual State Business Tax Climate Index, and analysis of current state legislative proposals. Prior to joining the Foundation, Josh worked for Wells Fargo Bank's New York office in a variety of commercial real estate finance capacities. Previously | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Humor: New Tax Foundation YouTube Video | | 2008-06-15 23:00:00 | | Why is it so difficult to enact meaningful tax reform? It would take us all day to write a comprehensive answer to that question, but if you're searching for a quick, amusing answer, take a look at our new video on YouTube, "Takin' on the Tax Code." The video pokes fun at some of the special interests that create roadblocks to tax reform. In addition to injecting some laughter into the tax debates, this video should get everyone thinking seriously about the obstacles to fundamental reform and what needs to be done to keep the tax reform movement on track.Click here or below to watch the video. Click here for the Tax Freedom Day song and video. Click here for more on tax reform. | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | New Tax Foundation Study Analyzes New York Property Tax Reform Proposal | | 2008-06-10 23:00:00 | | Across the country people are upset about property taxes, and New York is no exception. In fact, New York State has some of the highest property taxes in the nation. But it looks like there might soon be some improvements to the state's property tax system. A new Tax Foundation Fiscal Fact analyzes the recommendations in a report recently issued by the New York State Commission on Property Tax Relief. The bipartisan panel was established last year by Governor Eliot Spitzer to propose solutions to rein in ballooning property taxes while maintaining the state's commitment to public education. Here's an excerpt from the Fiscal Fact, "Sound Tax Policy Coming to New York (?)," by Josh Barro:We've only preliminarily reviewed the Commission's report, but on balance it appears to contain a good set of recommendations. The proposals appear to improve an existing property tax rebate program that rewards school districts for raising taxes; provide a meaningful cap on property tax levies | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Foundation Urges North Carolina Supreme Court to Hold that Lottery Is a Tax | | 2008-05-20 23:00:00 | | On Monday the Tax Foundation filed friend-of-the-court brief with the North Carolina Supreme Court in Heatherly v. State, urging the court to reverse a lower court ruling and hold that the North Carolina Education Lottery generates tax revenue, not "profits."35 percent of lottery revenues is dedicated to general state spending, equivalent to a 35-percent tax on the sale of each lottery ticket. If that revenue is found to be a tax under the meaning of North Carolina law, then the lottery's enactment in 2005 did not meet the basic state constitutional requirements for enacting tax law.According to the Tax Foundation brief, the lottery revenue meets all three tests for defining a tax. Current U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer laid out the criteria for defining a tax when he decided the San Juan Cellular case for the First Circuit Court of Appeals in 1992. Breyer argued that a judge should consider who imposes the assessment, who pays the assessment, and what the revenue | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Foundation Cigarette Tax Op-Ed in Wall Street Journal | | 2008-05-06 23:00:00 | | An op-ed by Tax Foundation chief economist Patrick Fleenor appeared in the Wall Street Journal today. The op-ed, "Cigarette Taxes Are Fueling Organized Crime," discusses the damage inflicted on society by high cigarette taxes, which often cause consumers to turn to the black market. The amount of criminal activity related to cigarette taxes is staggering, as Fleenor explains:While the problem first surfaced during the Great Depression, tax hikes in the early 1960s created a major profit opportunity for smugglers and kicked the epidemic into high gear. By 1967, a quarter of the cigarettes consumed in the Empire State were bootlegged. New York City's finance administrator labeled cigarette smuggling the "principal stoking facility of the engine of organized crime."Crime rapidly spread beyond New York's borders, as trucks carrying cigarettes across the country were hijacked and businesses selling them robbed to supply New York's black market. In 1972, the cha | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Foundation Files Brief to Ensure Uniform Application of Tax Code and Prevent Harm to Taxpayers | | 2008-04-28 23:00:00 | | In May, the U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether to hear the case of Centerior Energy Corp. v. Mikulski, an appeal from a lower court decision opening the door to fragmented state-by-state interpretations of the U.S. tax code. The Tax Foundation has filed a friend of the court brief urging the Court to take the case, which raises the question of whether taxes paid to the government can be recovered from a business instead of from the IRS.Like many taxpayers, Centerior Energy Corp. was confronted with applying complex tax laws to its individual situation. The tax law in question, 26 U.S.C. § 7422, was left ambiguous by Congress, which had expected the IRS to issue further regulations. Since the IRS never did, Centerior and other taxpayers had to choose between two conflicting, but equally plausible, interpretations. The plaintiffs in this case (the Mikulskis) allege that Centerior chose wrongly, and as a result, caused them to overpay their income taxes. The lower court agreed, s | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Foundation Urges a Stop to South Dakota's Discriminatory Insurance Taxes | | 2008-04-15 23:00:00 | | The Tax Foundation, in a friend-of-the-court brief filed with the South Dakota Supreme Court, urges that state to stop its discriminatory insurance tax system that taxes out-of-state companies at twice the rate of in-state companies. The case, Metropolitan Life Ins. Co. v. Kinsman, is currently before the court on a petition for rehearing. Since explicit discrimination in rates was struck down as violating the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1985, South Dakota is one of 8 remaining states that seek to protect their domestic insurance companies by imposing heavier taxes on out-of-state companies doing business in the state. While on paper all companies pay the same 2.5% rate, in-state companies automatically receive rate reductions, lowering their tax bill to 0.75% to 1.25%. The result is effective discrimination against out-of-state companies which violates the Equal Protection Clause, as the trial judge concluded.While the trial judg | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Foundation Helps Advance Mississippi Tax Reform | | 2008-04-03 23:00:00 | | Yesterday, Tonya recapped our trip to Mississippi, where we had the opportunity to testify before the State Tax Study Commission, which was established by Governor Haley Barbour to prepare a comprehensive study of the state's tax system and recommend improvements by this coming summer.We took the opportunity to present a new paper outlining recommendations for the Commission to consider, and I must say that the Governor and the Commission were extremely engaged, asking excellent questions and showing a determination to understand the issues. Here are three pictures from our trip:Tonya with Governor Barbour, me, and Commission Chair Leland Speed:Tonya with Forest Thigpen, Commission Member and President of the Mississippi Center for Public Policy, who graciously gave us a tour of the Capitol:Tonya and I in front of the Mississippi State Capitol:We hope to continue to keep in touch with Mississippi and offer research and analysis assistance as their reform efforts progress. | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Foundation Still Looking for Summer Interns! | | 2008-03-24 23:00:00 | | The Tax Foundation is still looking for summer interns! We've extended our application deadline to April 15, the same day taxes are due (to help keep us mind). Please pass on the information to anyone you think might be interested.Past and present interns have researched and published commentaries on policy in newspapers and journals, with staff assistance in topic selection, editing, and placement; assisted in microsimulation models of tax changes; and posted on our tax policy blog. Information about Tax Foundation internships, and how to apply, is here on this page. | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | New Tax Foundation Study Shows Half of U.S. States Tax Businesses More Heavily than Any Other Nation Does | | 2008-03-18 00:00:00 | | A new Tax Foundation Fiscal Fact shows that half of U.S. states tax job providers at a higher rate than any other country in the developed world. Counting the federal rate alone, the U.S. has the world's highest corporate tax rate, but including average sub-national rates (federal plus state in the U.S.), Japan edges out the U.S. for the highest-tax location.This study breaks the tax down by state, adding each state's corporate tax rate to the federal corporate tax rate. The results show that 25 states impose, when combined with the federal rate, a higher business tax rate than in any other nation. In fact:25 states have a combined corporate tax rate higher than top-ranked Japan.35 states have a combined corporate tax rate higher than third-ranked Germany.46 states have a combined corporate tax rate higher than fourth-ranked Canada.All 50 states have a combined corporate tax rate higher than fifth-ranked France.According to Tax Foundation president Scott Hodge, the study's author:This | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Foundation Answers Legal Questions behind Northern Virginia Transportation Tax Dispute | | 2008-02-15 00:00:00 | | As residents of Northern Virginia begin to pay seven new taxes implemented by a non-elected body, the Virginia Supreme Court is considering whether these new taxes are constitutional. The Tax Foundation released a paper today discussing the legal challenge and highlighting the use of non-legislative bodies to "get around" taxpayer protection statutes. "The concept of taxation with representation is as American as apple pie," said paper author and Tax Foundation tax counsel Joseph D. Henchman. "The Northern Virginia Transportation Authority is an unelected body that has imposed $326 million in stealth taxes. Virginia requires tax increases to be passed by a popular vote for a reason, and these types of taxpayers protections should, and legally must, be protected."Voters had on several occasions previously rejected the types of taxes imposed by the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority (NVTA), but legislators simply imposed them anyway. This violate | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Foundation Releases Presidential Candidate Tax Plan Comparison | | 2008-02-01 00:00:00 | | With the upcoming 2008 presidential election, tax policy will soon be on voters' minds more than ever. Taxes are one of the central issues in any national election, and it is important for the public to understand candidates' general views toward tax policy as well as their positions on specific issues, such as the alternative minimum tax (AMT) and corporate tax rates. While some candidates have been more forthcoming and specific than others about their stance on various tax issues, they will all need to divulge and elaborate on their positions as the race progresses.To help voters sort through the details of each candidate's proposal, the Tax Foundation has released a comparison of the candidates' positions on the most important tax questions of this election. To use this page, simply check the boxes next to the names of the candidates whose plans you would like to compare and click "Compare." As the race narrows and the remaining candidates refine and expound their posi | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Foundation Testifies before Vermont Legislature on Future of VermontÂs Lottery | | 2008-01-17 00:00:00 | | Vermont is one of a dozen states that are considering leasing or selling their lotteries. Yesterday, Alicia Hansen, author of the Tax Foundation Background Paper Gambling with Tax Policy: States' Growing Reliance on Lottery Tax Revenue, testified before the Vermont Legislature's Ways and Means Committee on the merits and drawbacks of different types of lottery privatization. She explained that selling the lottery to a private company would be preferable to leasing it because a sale would remove the state entirely from the lottery business:The drawback to a lease, from a tax policy standpoint, is that the state would still be involved in the lottery business and would still in effect be imposing a high implicit tax on lottery sales when it collects the annual revenue from the private company. ...The third option is selling the lottery outright to a private company. This is the best option, and has been considered by Massachusetts, Colorado, Texas, Michigan, Illinois and New Jersey (some of these states have also considered leases).There are a few potential challenges to consider, however. Lawmakers looking to sell a lottery—or any public asset—for a one-time payment must consider what will happen after the lump-sum payment is used up. Will the money be spent slowly and carefully, and will it last as long as predicted? The executive director of the California Budget Project, commenting on Governor Schwarzenegger's lottery-privatization proposal, said, "The problem is that it's a one-time infusion of cash when we have an ongoing budget shortfall. ... You can only sell an asset once." However, in FY 2006 Vermont raised only .6% of its own-source revenue from the lottery, less than the average lottery state. If Vermont is going to sell the lottery, now would be the best time, before it becomes more dependent on lottery revenue. Losing the revenue now would likely not be as painful as many people fear given the small | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Foundation Proposes Long-Term Solution to Economic Woes, Not Quick Fix | | 2008-01-11 00:00:00 | | Hillary Clinton unveiled her economic stimulus package today as Congress and the Administration continue to discuss quick fixes for the economy. The Tax Foundation weighed in on the issue with a proposal to focus on long-term solutions instead, such as lowering the corporate tax rate, currently the second highest in the industrialized world."While stimulus packages may be politically popular," said Dr. Robert Carroll, study author and vice president for economic policy, "they are often ill-timed, poorly-crafted, and do little to boost the economy. Sound monetary policy should be used in the short run to help stabilize the economy."Click here to read Fiscal Stimulus: Missing the Big Picture?. Click here for more on corporate taxes. | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Foundation Once Again Refutes Warren BuffettÂs Tax Misconceptions | | 2007-12-13 00:00:00 | | We have written about Warren Buffett's misconceptions on taxes here, here, and here, and, once again, we need to inject some truth and perspective into his recent public statements on the income tax. Buffett made a joint appearance with Hillary Clinton earlier this week and argued for increased progressivity in the tax code. From the Associated Press:Clinton played moderator and questioned Buffett—one of the world's richest people with a net worth of $52 billion, according to Forbes magazine—about the economy. Buffett is chairman and CEO of Omaha, Neb.-based Berkshire Hathaway Inc., an investment company he founded.Buffett and Clinton warned of the dangers of a growing gap between rich and poor, and a tax system that disproportionately helps people Buffett called "these super-rich"—himself included. Both said political and economic instability could result."In the last seven-eight years what has happened is that the super-rich have gotten a huge break | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | | Photos of Tax Foundation's 70th Annual Dinner Available | | 2007-12-03 00:00:00 | | The Tax Foundation's 70th Annual Dinner was held on Thursday, November 15. We have posted photos of the event for viewing or purchase here. At the event, we presented the Tax Foundation Public Sector Distinguished Service Award to Nina Olson, National Taxpayer Advocate (below, with Tax Foundation President Scott Hodge). We presented Bernard M. (Bob) Shapiro, Partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers, and Mark McConaghy, Managing Partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers, with our Private Sector Distinguished Service Awards. (Click here for a list of previous award recipients.) Photos of the award recipients, guests and Tax Foundation staff are all available. | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | | Tax Foundation Files Two U.S. Supreme Court Briefs | | 2007-09-25 07:00:00 | | Last week, the Tax Foundation filed amicus curiae ("friend of the court") briefs with the U.S. Supreme Court in two cases: - Staff IT, Inc. v. United States (07-221) - The Tax Foundation's brief supports Staff IT, Inc.'s effort to have its case heard by the U.S. Supreme Court. If the lower court ruling stands, the brief argues, "troubled small business that owe taxes and creditors will end up paying neither. This is a result that benefits no one, and a result that Congress sought to avoid." See more here.- Kentucky Dep't of Revenue v. Davis (06-666) - The Tax Foundation's brief supports George and Catherine Davis, Kentucky residents who invested in municipal bonds issued by several states. Federal law excludes from income tax all interest earned by such bonds, but Kentucky punishes out-of-state investment by taxing interest on non-Kentucky bonds. The legal challenge is based on the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which bars states from | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Foundation Economist to Discuss Cigarette Taxes | | 2007-09-11 07:00:00 | | This Thursday, September 13, Tax Foundation Chief Economist Patrick Fleenor will be part of a panel discussing the proposal to raise cigarette taxes as part of the renewal of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). The panel, hosted by the Cato Institute, will be in B-339 Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill at noon. For more information and to RSVP, visit Cato's events page.For more on cigarette taxes, including the SCHIP increase proposal, click here. | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | New Job Opportunities at the Tax Foundation | | 2007-08-13 07:00:00 | | We are currently recruiting for two positions, one in the development department and one in the research department. First, we are looking for an economist to write studies and op-eds, compile data and communicate with the media. This person would also develop entrepreneurial projects that would advance the reach and effectiveness of the Tax Foundation's research agenda. Click here for details. Second, our development department is seeking a qualified candidate to work on event planning and charitable giving. We rely on charitable contributions from individual, corporate and foundation donors, and this position will be responsible for managing event planning for key Tax Foundation social events, donor relations and related travel arrangements. Click here for more information. | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | The Hill Covers Tax Foundation Research on SCHIP Funding Bill | | 2007-07-17 07:00:00 | | As we have been writing recently (here and here), a bill being marked up by the Senate today that would fund SCHIP (State Children's Health Insurance Program) with a cigarette tax increase is poor tax policy. An op-ed by Tax Foundation economist Gerald Prante on the subject appeared in The Hill today, and The Hill's Congress Blog also included a post about our research on this topic today, calling the SCHIP bill "counterintuitive."For more information on the SCHIP proposal, click here, here and here.For more on cigarette taxes, click here. | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | New Tax Foundation Primer on Investment Income Taxation | | 2007-07-17 07:00:00 | | In a debate of Democratic presidential hopefuls last month, John Edwards put forth the following argument:People who have done well ought to have more responsibility to pay back to the country. We have a capital-gains rate—15 percent—which is the rate that most pay on their investment income, like Warren Buffett. That's significantly lower than the tax rate that his secretary pays; that's not right. There is a moral disconnect. Edwards echoes the sentiments of other democratic candidates, including Hillary Clinton, who were responding to a call from billionaire Warren Buffet for higher tax rates on investment income. (See debate transcript here.)We recently released a short primer on capital gains and dividend taxation, explaining why investment income is taxed at a different rate than wage income, and which segments of the population are affected most by the different tax rates. As author Gerald Prante explains, there are three basic reasons investment income is ta | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Things We Thought WeÂd Never See at the Tax Foundation, But Thanks to the Wisconsin Senate Â
| | 2007-06-28 07:00:00 | | A state legislative body has voted to double its tax collections in one year.The Wisconsin Senate passed a budget plan to increase taxes $15.2 billion in fiscal year 2009. That would more than double Wisconsin's tax collections of $13.8 billion in fiscal year 2006, according to the latest available data from the Census Bureau.A state legislative body has voted to raise taxes by almost the same amount as the state's taxpayers send to the federal government in income tax payments.The $15.2 billion tax increase is only slightly less than the $15.8 billion Wisconsin taxpayers sent to the IRS for income taxes in 2005. And that's just the increase!A state legislative body has voted a tax increase equivalent to 50 percent of general fund revenue. See Table 1.Table 1: Top Ten Tax Increases at the State Level, Compared to Wisconsin Senate Budget (Percentage of State General Fund Revenue), 2000 - 2009RankStateTax Increase as a Percentage of State General Fund RevenueYearN/AWisconsin* | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | New Data on Tax Foundation Website | | 2007-06-13 07:00:00 | | We have recently updated some of the datasets on our website and added a few new ones. All of these charts can be found in the Data section of our site, and the Research Areas page lists all data and studies by topic. Here are the most recent additions:State and Local Government General Revenue by Source, 2005State Government General Revenue by Source, 2005State Motor Fuel Tax Collections by State, 2006Toll Revenue vs. Motor Fuel Taxes by State, 2005State and Local General Sales and Gross Receipts Tax Collections Per Capita, 2005State and Local General Sales Tax Collections Per Capita, 2005Federal Capital Gains Tax Collections, 1954-2004State and Local Corporate Income Tax Collections Per Capita, 2005State Corporate Income Tax Collections, 2006Federal Estate Tax Collections, by State and Per Capita, 2006State Estate and Gift Tax Collections, by State and Per Capita, 2006 | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Foundation Weighs in on North Carolina Lottery Lawsuit | | 2007-05-23 07:00:00 | | Ever since it was first debated in the legislature, North Carolina's lottery has been plagued by scandal, crime, accusations of underhanded machinations in the legislature, and a slew of other problems. But none of this compares to the lawsuit.A group represented by the North Carolina Institute for Constitutional Law filed suit against the state in December 2005, asking a judge to block the lottery's start and arguing that a lottery is in part a tax and the legislature breached the state's constitutional requirement that tax legislation be passed in both the House and Senate on three separate days. In March 2006 a judge ruled that the lottery is not a tax and therefore the bill was passed constitutionally, and the lottery could proceed with ticket sales. The case was appealed and arguments before the court of appeals started on May 21. One of the things the judges may take into consideration is an amicus curiae brief submitted by the Tax Foundation in January, arguing that | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Job Opportunity at the Tax Foundation | | 2007-05-17 07:00:00 | | The Tax Foundation is searching for a Manager of State Relations to join its state fiscal policy team. The Manager of State Relations will function as the point person for contact with state government officials and help provide direction and management of the Foundation's general state legislative outreach program. He or she will also help develop and implement all state government affairs programs and activities. The ideal candidate will have a bachelor's degree in a related field, one to three years' experience working with state lawmakers, and a basic understanding of state and local tax issues.Click here to read the job description. Click here for other employment opportunities at the Tax Foundation. | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Foundation President Testifies Before Congress | | 2007-05-11 07:00:00 | | Yesterday Tax Foundation President Scott Hodge testified during a Senate Committee on Finance hearing titled "Can the Middle Class Make Ends Meet? Economic Issues for America's Working Families."He discussed recent Tax Foundation research on the middle-class tax burden and the changing demographics of the middle class. He explained that, due to the rise in dual-income couples, today's statistical middle class does not resemble the middle class of 40 years ago. Today, the majority of the middle income quintile is unmarried individuals, while married couples with children tend to populate the top two income quintiles. Hodge said the tax code is already asking too much of these married working couples, who are funding more than their share of government services. He described the best way to help all taxpayers, including the statistical middle class and the married couples with children whom we tend to think of as middle-class regardless of their actual incomes:Pro | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Tax Foundation Seeks New Manager of Media Relations | | 2007-04-24 07:00:00 | | The Tax Foundation is currently looking to hire a new manager of media relations to join its communications team. This exciting position involves promoting the work of the Tax Foundation to the media and requires a minimum of three years of media or public relations experience. Responsibilities include promoting Tax Foundation op-eds to editorial pages, writing and disseminating press releases about new Tax Foundation publications, and tracking media hits for internal use and promotion on the website. The ideal candidate will also have a bachelor's degree in a related field, familiarity with tax issues, and excellent written and oral communication skills.Chick here for more details on this position. Click here for general information on employment at the Tax Foundation and for other job openings. Send resume to jobs@taxfoundation.org. No phone calls, please. | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
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