Topic: Tax Policy Center

'Fiscal cliff' deal: What will it mean for you?

Some aspects of the fiscal cliff deal are well-known – such as rising tax rates on the rich. But, actually, everyone will be paying more taxes. Here's a look at the deal's details.

Fiscal deal will cost you: 8 tax changes

[Editor's note: This story was updated on Jan. 2 at 10:00 am ET.]

Congress has passed a fiscal deal that averts the worst of the tax increases under the "fiscal cliff." But most Americans will still end up paying more in federal taxes. Here are eight tax changes under the fiscal deal that may hit your pocketbook:   

Tax VOX
Why we need a better corporate income tax

The current US corporate income tax in effect imposes a fee on companies that are publicly traded. The tax is neither efficient nor progressive.

Tax VOX
Fiscal cliff could impact low-income families the most

The fiscal cliff debate thus far leaves the most vulnerable families quite close to the edge, Maag writes.

Tax VOX
What changing the consumer price index would mean for taxpayers

Tax VOX
Fiscal cliff talks stall. Middle class tax bill won't help.

Fiscal cliff talks are at an impasse, and there has been talk that House Republicans will pass the Middle Class Tax Cut Act approved by the Senate last summer. It's a problematic and ineffective idea. 

Decoder Wire
Taxing the rich: why $250,000 became the benchmark

Some Democrats had sought an income threshold well above $250,000. But since the election campaign and in 'fiscal cliff' talks, that's the number President Obama has settled on. Here's what's behind it.

Should estate tax rise in a 'fiscal cliff' deal? Why some ultra-rich say yes.

While much of the focus in the 'fiscal cliff' debate has been on income taxes, the group of wealthy Americans says an estate tax 'promotes democracy by slowing the concentration of wealth and power.'

Tax VOX
The looming alternative minimum tax debacle

Tens of millions of Americans will face a huge tax increase when they file their 2012 tax returns early next year from the expiration of the temporary increase in exemption levels under the alternative minimum tax, Toder writes.

Tax VOX
Will the fiscal cliff hurt charities the most?

With income tax deduction caps among the ideas considered in the fiscal cliff debate, the challenge becomes to raise revenue without discouraging giving, Gleckman writes.

Obama tax plan: Which cities would it hit hardest?

President Obama's plan to raise tax rates would hit the wealthiest Americans. Yet cities with the highest percentage of rich households are clustered in blue states.

Tax VOX
Tax cuts: How can 98 percent of us be middle-class?

Politicians can fight over whether some households should be exempt from tax increases, Gleckman writes, but can they at least stop claiming that 98 percent of us are middle-class?

Cover Story
Five reasons America won't fall off the 'fiscal cliff'

The political and economic ramifications are too big for Washington to let the large tax increases and spending cuts take effect. But this doesn't necessarily mean lawmakers will craft a decisive solution to the nation's fiscal woes.

'Fiscal cliff' 101: 5 basic questions answered

President Obama and congressional leaders are working to stop the US from going over the “fiscal cliff,” a combination of higher taxes and lower spending set to take effect Jan. 1. Here are five steps to understanding what's going on.

Tax VOX
Fiscal cliff: Will the states tumble, too?

Fiscal cliff talk has been mostly focused on what would happen to the federal budget and the national economy. But what impact would the fiscal cliff have on individual states?

Tax VOX
Fiscal cliffs, loopholes and entitlements: The truth behind politicians' favorite buzzwords

When Congress has tough decisions to make, they trot out euphemisms like fiscal cliff, tax loopholes and entitlements, Gleckman writes.

Tax VOX
The end of a disappointing campaign for both Obama, Romney

Gleckman asks: How do both presidential candidates get away with dodging critical fiscal issues on the campaign trail? We let them, he answers.

Tax VOX
What is Mitt Romney’s tax plan?

Howard Gleckman offers a breakdown of Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney's proposed tax plan.

Tax VOX
What is President Obama's tax plan?

Gleckman offers a description of what President Barack Obama has pledged to do on tax policy if he is reelected president in November.

Romney tax plan: How rich could pay the 'same' and still pay less

Romney promises to make the rich keep paying a constant percentage of all US income taxes. That's very different from asking them to pay a constant share of their earnings.

Set aside debate over Romney tax math: Is tax reform a good idea?

The momentous policy challenge of how to fix America's dysfunctional tax system has been largely obscured by the debate over Mitt Romney's tax math. But there's broad support for tax reform.

Presidential debate 101: Does $25,000 deduction cap make Romney tax math work? (+video)

At the last presidential debate, Romney floated the number $25,000. According to one analysis, such a cap on deductions would generate $1.3 trillion in revenues, short of the estimated $5 trillion in tax cuts.

Tax VOX
The real lesson about capping itemized deductions

The campaign of GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney has criticized the Tax Policy Center for new research that provides evidence that a deduction cap is a pretty good, though insufficient, idea, Gleckman writes.

Presidential debate 101: Does Romney’s tax math add up?

Here’s a closer look at the tax reform proposals that Mitt Romney discussed during Tuesday night's debate. Do President Obama and others have a point in challenging the math?

Tax VOX
What the Joint Tax Committee really said about tax reform

Gleckman takes a closer look at a new analysis of tax reform by the Joint Committee on Taxation. His perspective may offer some relief to tax reformers.