Forbes’ senior contributor Kelly Phillips Erb wrote about the sharp fall in charitable contributions claimed by taxpayers in 2018. Recent data from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) reveals that in 2018, charitable deductions claimed by taxpayers fell by $37 billion compared to 2017. Erb cites PWBM research, which projected a 5.1 percent reduction in total charitable giving due to the TCJA.
Program Choice and Financing Matter for Infrastructure Plans
PWBM’s Jon Huntley and Richard Prisinzano discussed how the financing of a federal infrastructure plan influences its effect on economic growth. Even though infrastructure investments increase productivity, plans that are deficit-financed can reduce GDP relative to current policy.
The Effect of the U.S. - China Trade War on the U.S. Economy
PWBM’s Efraim Berkovich, the Wharton School’s Marshall Meyer and Mary Lovely of the Maxwell School of Syracuse University discussed how the recently imposed tariffs on Chinese goods are raising prices for consumers, disrupting supply chains and weighing down economic growth in the long-run.
Revenue Raised by Tariffs on China Doesn’t Cover Costs
New York Times reporters Ana Swanson and Jim Tankersley compared the revenue generated by tariffs on China with the costs of the trade war to U.S. businesses and consumers. Tariffs on Chinese goods have raised $20.8 billion in revenue. However, President Trump has promised $28 billion to compensate farmers alone. PWBM explains that tariffs raise the price of goods. PWBM’s Richard Prisinzano noted, “The tariffs make all consumers worse off.” In addition, Kent Smetters, PWBM’s Faculty Director, estimated that the tariffs could, “cost the median U.S. household with earnings of $61,000 about $500 to $550 a year.”
Policymakers Cite PWBM Estimates About Indexing Capital Gains to Inflation
On July 12, 2019, Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) wrote a letter citing PWBM to the Steve Mnuchin, Secretary of the Treasury, to reject a plan to change tax law so that capital gains would be adjusted for inflation. The law change would cut taxes paid on the sale of assets such as stocks, real estate, and other investments. The
The White House's Plan for Indexing Capital Gains to Inflation
Bloomberg’s Saleha Mohsin reports the Trump administration’s plan to index capital gains to inflation. Citing PWBM’s analysis, Mohsin highlights that indexing capital gains will disproportionately benefit those with high incomes.
PWBM Projections In-Line with Official Government Estimates
In the Congressional Research Service’s report on the economic effects of the 2017 tax bill, Senior Specialist in Economic Policy Jane Gravelle and Specialist in Public Finance Donald Marples analyzed the effects of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) on output and growth.
Tariff’s Projected to Raise Prices for Americans
The New York Times’ Jim Tankersley cites PWBM in an explanation of how Trump's tariffs erase the benefits of the current tax cuts. In particular, Tankersley finds that the benefits of Trump's tax cuts to the lower and middle classes will likely unwind as a result of his tariffs on goods from China, Mexico, and Europe.
Tariff Increases Will Cost U.S. Households
In Trump’s tariffs are equivalent to one of the largest tax increases in decades CNBC’s Steve Liesman analyses data from the Treasury Department to find that tariffs proposed by President Trump will raise $72 billion in revenue. Previously, PWBM has estimated the economic costs of a trade war and that the impact of a trade war could wipe out economic gains from last year’s tax cuts.
USAFacts 2019 Annual Report - Our nation, in numbers.
Forbes Contributor, Sheila Callahan, covered USAFacts release of its third annual report on May 2, 2019. The report highlighted recent shifts in U.S. demographics, noting that seniors, 65 years and older, are now 16 percent of the population.
Gig Economy Workers Face Tax Hurdles
Knowledge@Wharton invited Senior Economist at PWBM, Richard Prisinzano, on as a guest speaker on April 12, 2019, as well as Christine Speidel of Villanova University’s Federal Tax Clinic , to discuss discuss personal taxes, focusing on gig economy workers.
First Tax Day Under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
CNN reported on the first Tax Day under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Lydia Depillis highlighted key economic effects of the 2017’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
Americans Startled by Impact of New Tax Law on Returns
Knowledge@Wharton invited Senior Economist at PWBM, Richard Prisinzano, on as a guest speaker on March 12, 2019, as well as the Center for Tax Law and Policy’s Michael Knoll, to discuss the impact of the TCJA’s tax changes on tax filers this year.
Annual Data is Better than Monthly for Understanding Tax Revenues
FactCheck.org’s Eugene Kiely explored how to think about the impact of 2017’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) on tax revenue through official measures of tax receipts. Treasury reports show that in 2018 tax receipts were slightly lower than in 2017. However, tax receipts in February 2019 were 10% higher than in February 2018. Kiely asked PWBM’s Alexander Arnon what these figures mean for future tax receipts.
Need Help Understanding the Impact of the New Tax Law on You? Check Out The Wall Street Journal Tax Calculator Powered By PWBM
On March 4, Dylan Moriarty and Richard Rubin presented the Wall Street Journal Tax Calculator, powered by Penn Wharton Budget Model, to help taxpayers understand tax law as they prepare their taxes. Taxpayers only need to enter a few key characteristics such as income and marital status to get an estimate of their tax liability from 2018 to 2027.
Experts Debate Impact of TCJA on Growth and Investment
The Economist’s print edition, published February 7th, reports that “Some Fights About the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Seem Over.” Public opinion polls indicate that voters think that “large corporations and rich Americans” are the ones benefiting from the tax law. Meanwhile, policy analysts continue to debate the details.
Raising Taxes on the Rich Can Have Unintended Consequences
Penn Wharton Budget Model Senior Economist Richard Prisinzano discussed raising taxes on the wealthy with Alan Auerbach, Professor of Economics and Law at University of California Berkeley, and Knowledge@Wharton host Dan Loney. You can listen to the full discussion below.
Growth in Business Investments Tied to Oil Prices, Not Tax Cuts
The New York Times reported Tuesday that the Trump Administration’s “rosy” outlook on the U.S. economy is “increasingly diverging” from economists’ forecasts. The White House predicted that the economy will continue to grow at 3 percent through 2024 (adjusted for inflation), while the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released their forecasts standing at 2.3 percent for 2019, slowing to 1.7 percent in 2020. Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve’s forecast also predicts 2.3 percent growth in 2019, and Goldman Sachs suggested a more conservative 2.1 percent growth this year based on consumer confidence figures and regional business surveys.
The Economic Boost from the Tax Bill is Temporary
On October 11, 2018, the CNN show, “Quest Means Business” features a heated debate about the recent rate hikes by the Federal Reserve and President Trump’s disapproval of them, in which he cites recent economic growth. Opinion columnist for “The Washington Post”, Catherine Rampell, cites PWBM — alongside the Congressional Budget Office, International Monetary Fund, and Federal Reserve — as finding that the economic boost from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is temporary.
As Predicted TCJA Isn’t Paying For Itself: Confirmed by Figures from the Treasury Department
Jim Tankersley emphasized how recent tax reform will not pay for itself in his New York Times article, "No, Trump’s Tax Cut Isn’t Paying for Itself (at Least Not Yet)." Even though federal revenues increased marginally in 2018, it will not be enough to cover the tax cut. On October 15th, the Treasury Department announced that despite economic growth and low unemployment, the federal budget deficit grew by 17 percent.