PoliticsNews
About-Face? Republicans Weigh Raising Taxes on Top Earners
Some Republicans are considering a new way to free up space in the budget—raising taxes on the wealthiest Americans. The idea of raising taxes—which goes… Read More
EconomyNews
‘FEELING THE SQUEEZE’: Most Hispanics Say Country’s on Wrong Track, Taxes Are Too High
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—According to a recent poll, fully 75% of Hispanic voters think the country is on the wrong track. Even among self-identified… Read More
The Robin Hood Fallacy: Piketty Would Take from the Rich to Give to the Poor
In public policy, bad ideas—no matter how many times they have been discredited—never completely go away. They seem to pop up over and over. Enter… Read More
Most Small Businesses Burdened by Costly Tax Preparation Process Support Tax Reform
Small businesses are increasingly burdened with tax preparation costs, with a majority spending over a week per year on federal tax preparation and thousands of… Read More
Heritage’s Macroeconomic Estimate of Camp’s Tax Reform Proposal
The Heritage Foundation’s Center for Data Analysis recently completed a preliminary macroeconomic analysis of House Ways and Means Committee chairman Dave Camp’s (R–MI) Tax Reform… Read More
Tax Reform at Last?
Today, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R) of Michigan jumpstarts the tax reform debate. It’s about time. The tax code stables in… Read More
Mamma Mia! Sweden’s Remarkable Rise in Economic Freedom
A member of celebrated Swedish pop group ABBA recently made this confession about the group’s signature bell bottoms and platform heels: “[W]e looked like nuts… Read More
Top 1 Percent Pays Effective Tax Rate Nearly Three Times That of Middle Class
New data from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) show that President Obama’s much-discussed Buffett Rule, which would require families earning more than $1 million a… Read More
Governor Challenges Status Quo, Brings Reforms to North Carolina
North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory visited Heritage this week to discuss the dynamic reforms he’s spearheaded since taking office 10 months ago. He spoke to… Read More
The Right Kind of Federalism
Regular elections are a critical feature of American democracy. If you don’t like the way your town, state, or federal government is headed, you know… Read More
Deficient GAO Report Hurts Tax Reform Efforts
There is broad consensus that corporate tax reform is necessary to unleash business investment that the currently uncompetitive system prevents. Regrettably, some will use a… Read More
Baucus–Hatch “Blank Slate” Tax Reform a Positive Step but Too Narrowly Focused
Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee Max Baucus (D–MT) and Ranking Member Senator Orrin Hatch (R–UT) recently proposed a “blank-slate” approach to tax reform. This… Read More
Morning Bell: What Did Apple Do Wrong?
Members of Congress called Apple executives to testify on Capitol Hill yesterday. Why? Because the company makes money overseas, and some Senators want to get… Read More
EconomyNews
Hunting for Surprises in the Obama Budget
It is somehow fitting President Obama released his budget for Fiscal Year 2014 after Easter, a mere 65 days late—but who’s counting? Fitting because going… Read More
A Step in the Right Direction: Obama’s Chained CPI Proposal
Outside the President’s general, grow-the-government, increase-the-debt, tax-the-rich budget themes lies a commonsense proposal to use a more accurate measure of inflation when calculating government benefit… Read More
Cyprus Bank Bailout: Russia Partly to Blame
As Cypriots come to grips with this week’s agreement to bail out its banks, Russian policymakers need to think about why their citizens are involved… Read More
Senate Budget Tax Plan: Slowing Opportunity for Americans to Grow Income
Senator Patty Murray’s (D–WA) budget tax plan directly calls for $975 billion in new tax increases over the next decade. Indeed, the Senate budget is… Read More
Morning Bell: 6 Things the Next U.S. Budget Should Do
It’s time for Congress to make a real budget—and not just any budget. It’s been four years since the U.S. had a real budget. While… Read More
Simpson–Bowles Redux: Another $600 Billion Tax Increase
Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson, former co-chairs of the 2010 White House deficit-reduction panel whose plan failed, released an outline for a new proposal on… Read More
Small Business Owners to Congress: Fix the Debt with Entitlement Reform
The National Small Business Association’s economic report finds, “The growing national debt is the number one thing small businesses thin[k] Congress and the administration should… Read More
EconomyNews
A Simple and Wrong Answer to Poverty: Increasing the Minimum Wage
During last night’s State of the Union address, President Obama proposed fighting poverty by raising the minimum wage. It sounds appealing but it will not… Read More
The Income Tax Turns 100 Years Old
The federal income tax is now a centenarian. On February 3, 1913, the 16th amendment to the Constitution was ratified. The revenue the income tax… Read More
Scholars Agree: High Tax Rates Do Harm Growth
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) stirred controversy last year when it released a study claiming that tax rates do not influence economic growth. Predictably, those… Read More
Morning Bell: 13 Tax Increases in 2013
New Year’s Day was tough for taxpayers. Thirteen tax increases kicked in. The deal that Congress and President Obama struck that finally—but only partially—avoided the… Read More
Morning Bell: Taxes to Rise on Most American Workers
Representative Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) called it “a happy start to a new year.” That probably tells you all you need to know about the fiscal… Read More
Morning Bell: Tax Hikes to Start the New Year
While you were sleeping—or ringing in 2013—the Senate voted to raise taxes. After missing the midnight deadline, Congress and the President have technically sent the… Read More
Morning Bell: 10 Facts on the Fiscal Cliff, Debt, and Spending
Budget policy in 2012 was characterized by deficit spending, major increases in the national debt, and a heated debate over the “fiscal cliff.” With just… Read More
Morning Bell: ’Twas the Night Before Cliff-mas
Christmas arrives this year at a time when our nation is on the brink of the fiscal cliff. With time running out for President Obama… Read More
Morning Bell: GOP Leaders Capitulate on Core Conservative Principles
House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and Republican leaders have done it once again. Their latest fiscal cliff proposal capitulates on core conservative principles, yielding woefully… Read More
Fiscal Cliff Solutions: Soar Over the Cliff or Kick the Can
Kicking the can is the least repugnant remaining resolution to the fiscal cliff. The only alternatives appear to be the Republicans’ unconditional surrender on income… Read More
