In releasing details of his coronavirus relief plan Thursday evening, President-elect Joe Biden envisions a two-part response to the pandemic and economic crisis. The first aspect builds on previous rounds of relief enacted in 2020, and would provide larger payments to individuals, expanded relief for households and small businesses, funding for vaccine distribution, and aid […]
In the next few weeks, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will begin accepting federal tax returns for the 2020 tax year. The coronavirus pandemic and multiple pandemic-related relief packages passed last year will make the tax season unique for taxpayers and for the IRS. Congress introduced several tax policy changes in 2020 that will impact […]
Table of Contents Key Findings Twenty-six states and the District of Columbia had notable tax changes take effect. Arkansas and Iowa reduced their corporate income tax rates and made other substantive changes to their corporate income tax base. Arizona and New Mexico increased their top marginal individual income tax rates by adding another bracket. Arkansas […]
The world is ready to close the book on 2020 and start fresh in 2021, awaiting widespread vaccination, an end to the pandemic, and the beginning of a new chapter of economic recovery. With a fresh start in mind, and a healthy dose of optimism, here are three New Year’s resolutions for crafting better tax […]
Leadership in the U.S. House and Senate came to an agreement in December over the details of a $900 billion COVID-19 relief bill, (Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021) to be attached to a broader $1.4 trillion omnibus which will fund the federal government for the 2021 fiscal year. The COVID-19 relief bill extends and modifies several provisions first enacted in […]
State tax collections declined 4.4 percent in aggregate through the end of September compared to the same nine months in 2019, according to U.S. Census Bureau data released today. The median state experienced a decline of 3.6 percent, and total state tax collections were $37.4 billion lower in the first nine months of 2020 than […]
Arkansas Lieutenant Governor Tim Griffin (R) recently announced his goal for the state to eliminate its income tax. He did not outline any specific plan but indicated that this would be a long-term process with the “conversation begin[ning] today” to make sure tax-related decisions would be made with this goal in mind. Lt. Governor Griffin’s […]
Monday, a bipartisan group of congressional policymakers released two compromise relief bills to address the COVID-19 pandemic, totaling about $908 billion: The Emergency Coronavirus Relief Act and the Bipartisan State and Local Support and Small Business Protection Act. The latter bill addresses both state and local aid and liability protection for businesses operating during the […]
Note: Below is an excerpt of the 2020 Spanish Regional Tax Competitiveness Index (RTCI), a recent report published in collaboration with Fundación para el Avance de la Libertad. The RTCI for Spain is designed to analyze how well regions structure their tax systems, allows policymakers, businesses, and taxpayers to evaluate and measure how their regions’ tax systems […]
Congress is having an unusually busy week as policymakers seek to simultaneously fund the federal government beyond the expiration of the continuing resolution on Friday and provide a second round of economic relief to individuals and businesses after passing the $2.6 trillion CARES Act last March. Lining up closely with the need to fund the […]