Category: Personal Income Tax
-
Redistribution in Reverse: The Macroeconomics of the OBBB with Addendum on the Senate Version
This amended policy brief evaluates the macroeconomic and distributional implications of both the House-passed and Senate-passed versions of the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB). The Senate (and final) version is largely similar to the House bill in structure and priorities. Both preserve the core individual income tax provisions of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs…
-
Assessing the Economic Effects of Extending and Increasing the QBI Deduction
The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) introduced a tax deduction of 20% of qualified business income (QBI) for pass-through businesses. This provision is set to expire at the end of 2025, but Republican lawmakers have proposed both extending it and increasing the deduction to 23%. This brief describes IMPA’s evaluation of the proposal.…
-
Assessing the Effects of Keeping Top Individual Income Tax Rates Low
The TCJA cut income taxes on top earners from 39.6% to 37%, among other changes. This brief assesses the macroeconomic impact of making the TCJA tax cut on top earners permanent compared to letting it expire and compared to raising it. IMPA’s assessment shows that permanent extension of the TCJA tax cut on top earners…
-
Technical Note on the Economics of Taxing Capital Gains
This technical note describes how, under the current system of capital gains taxation, capital gain income is taxed at lower rates than labor income—and only upon realization of the gains and with a step-up in basis at death. This system distorts the economy and contributes to inequality. Lower tax rates on capital gains income do…
-
Assessing the Effects of a Dividend and Capital Gains Tax Increase
This brief provides a new analysis of the macroeconomic effects of raising taxes on dividend income and capital gains. Increasing dividend income and capital gains taxes from 20% to 39.6% for households earning over $1 million would raise government revenue by about 5% and GDP by about 1% in the long term. The proposed tax increase…