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Sunday November 8, 2009

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VIDEO

Save to My PortfolioTax Reform and Fiscal Discipline Needed for Economic Recovery

William G. Gale, June 05, 2009

As the administration continues to wrangle with the floundering economy, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has advised that the growing budget deficits have to be cut. Economic Studies director William Gale agrees saying there needs to be a more comprehensive approach to stabilizing the economy.

RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY

Save to My PortfolioTax Reform Handcuffs

William G. Gale, May 04, 2009, National Journal

President Obama has embraced the idea of tax reform and created an independent commission, but told its members to work within the confines of current policy. Can there be meaningful reform that doesn't raise income taxes on 95 percent of taxpayers? William Gale discusses this and other issues regarding tax reform. Read More

PAST EVENT

Save to My PortfolioThe Scouting Report: Tax Reform

Wednesday, April 15, 2009
12:30 PM to 1:30 PM
Washington, DC

Igor VorobyovOn tax day in the United States, Leonard Burman, director of the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center, took questions about what the Obama administration should do to create a fair and equitable tax system during an online web chat moderated by Politico Senior Editor Fred Barbash. Read More

VIDEO

Save to My PortfolioChallenges and Opportunities for Tax Reform

William G. Gale, April 15, 2009

William Gale says the current tax system is too complicated, inequitable and inefficient. He says President Obama has to take the lead on reforming the tax code and that taxpayers should anticipate a future of higher taxes and fewer tax cuts.

PAST EVENT

Save to My PortfolioAmerican Corporate Tax Exceptionalism

Friday, February 20, 2009
9:00 AM to 1:30 PM
Washington, DC

The Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center (TPC) and the International Tax Policy Forum held a half-day conference to assess the extent to which the U.S. tax system differs from international norms and whether these differences affect U.S. economic performance. Read More

RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY

Save to My PortfolioFixing the Tax System

William G. Gale and Benjamin H. Harris, December 08, 2008, Tallahassee Democrat

Fixing the Tax SystemInnovative and sound tax policy may be one way out of our financial rut, argue Bill Gale and Ben Harris. An effective tax code can buoy an economic recovery; down the road, taxation can help achieve the Obama administration's goals in health care, in energy policy and, ultimately, for fiscal balance. Read More

PAST EVENT

Save to My PortfolioTax Reform’s Challenges and Opportunities

Friday, December 05, 2008
8:45 AM to 4:30 PM
Washington, DC

Tax Reform’s Challenges and OpportunitiesA new administration presents an ideal opportunity to reshape the nation’s tax code. Improving the equity, simplicity and efficiency of the tax system will help to better prepare taxpayers, businesses and the economy for the challenges that lay ahead. Brookings, the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center and Tax Analysts co-hosted a forum to explore timely policy recommendations for the incoming president and his transition team. Read More

RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY

Save to My PortfolioMemo to the President: Fix the Tax System

William G. Gale and Benjamin Harris, December 05, 2008, The Brookings Institution

Memo to the President: Fix the Tax SystemA new administration presents an ideal opportunity to reshape the nation’s tax code. Improving the equity, simplicity and efficiency of the tax system will help to better prepare taxpayers, businesses and the economy for the challenges that lay ahead. Read More

PAST EVENT

Save to My PortfolioThe Scouting Report: Fix the Tax System

Wednesday, December 03, 2008
12:30 PM to 1:30 PM

The Scouting Report: Fix the Tax SystemThe U.S. tax code is too complex, often supports misguided incentives, and raises inadequate revenue to support government spending. William Gale, vice president and director of Economic Studies, answered questions in a live web chat with Politico's Jeanne Cummings, chief lobbying and influence writer, about strengthening and improving our nation’s tax code. Read More

RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY

Save to My PortfolioClosing Budget Deficits: An Entitlements Commission is Not the Answer

Henry J. Aaron, June 24, 2008, House Committee on the Budget

Closing Budget Deficits: An Entitlements Commission is Not the AnswerHenry J. Aaron testified before the House Committee on the Budget about H.R. 3654, a bill that would establish a federal budget commission to "reform tax policy and entitlement benefit programs and ensure a sound fiscal future." Read More

RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY

Save to My PortfolioStabilizing State and Local Budgets: A Proposal for Tax-Base Insurance

Akash Deep and Robert Z. Lawrence, June 05, 2008, Hamilton Project Discussion Paper

The volatility of state tax revenues can force states and localities to cut back on necessary programs or raise taxes at a time when the state economy is already suffering. Akash Deep and Robert Z. Lawrence explain that pooling the risk of tax revenue losses could compensate states and localities for lost tax revenue and allow them to respond to fiscal crises without raising taxes or cutting services. Read More

RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY

Save to My PortfolioThe Tax System: Too Complex, Unfair and Outdated

William G. Gale, May 15, 2008, The Sacramento Bee

The Tax System: Too Complex, Unfair and OutdatedStimulus checks are a bright note in this year’s tax season. But, William Gale asserts, the annual tax-filing ritual is otherwise complicated and outdated. He recommends that the presidential candidates advocate changes like streamlining tax incentives and allowing some taxpayers to pay without filing returns. Read More

RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY

Save to My PortfolioHealth Reform Through Tax Reform: A Primer

Jason Furman, May 15, 2008, Project HOPE/ Health Affairs

Tax incentives for employer-sponsored insurance and other medical spending cost about $200 billion annually and have pervasive effects on coverage and costs. In this paper, Jason Furman surveys a range of proposals to reform health care, either by adding new tax incentives or by limiting or replacing the existing tax incentives. Read More

RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY

Save to My PortfolioIndividual Taxpayers and Federal Tax Reform

William G. Gale, May 13, 2008, Senate Finance Committee

Individual Taxpayers and Federal Tax Reform Taxpayers are overwhelmed by complexity, real and imagined, in the tax code. Testifying before the Senate Finance Committee, William Gale said that, although the need to simplify the tax system is one goal that everyone accepts, every year the system becomes more complex. Read More

RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY

Save to My Portfolio2016: Too Long to Wait for Tax Reform

Jason Furman, November 07, 2007, The Brookings Institution

Simplifying a complex and inequitable tax system can take years, history has shown. Jason Furman urges prompt action now that the new Ways and Means tax reform proposal offers a solid starting point. Read More

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TopicEducation

The economic and political well-being of any society requires a well-educated citizenry. Brookings’s work extends beyond the K-12 bookends to include pre-school interventions, higher education and the challenges of education in developing countries.

ExpertRichard Joseph

Richard Joseph is John Evans Professor of International History and Politics at Northwestern University. Former fellow of The Carter Center, Atlanta, he focuses on African governance, political economy, and democratization.

TopicHealth Care

Brookings is committed to producing innovative policy solutions to our nation’s most difficult challenges. The country may face no more important domestic policy challenge than the much-needed reform of our health care system. Through an institution-wide effort, Brookings delivers new ideas and offers policy solutions to improve health care both at home and globally.

Policy CenterCenter on Children and Families

The Center on Children and Families studies policies on the well-being of America's children and their parents and seeks a more effective means of addressing poverty, inequality and lack of opportunity in the United States.

ExpertMark McClellan

Mark McClellan works on promoting high-quality, innovative and affordable health care. Once commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration and administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Dr. McClellan now directs the Engelberg Center for Health Care Reform.

ExpertVanda Felbab-Brown

Vanda Felbab-Brown focuses on the national security implications of illicit economies and strategies for managing them. She is an adjunct professor in the Security Studies Program at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service.

ExpertSuzanne Maloney

Suzanne Maloney studies Iran, the political economy of the Persian Gulf and Middle East energy policy. A former U.S. State Department policy advisor, she has also counseled private companies on Middle East issues.

ProgramGovernance Studies

Governance Studies explores political institutions of the United States and other democracies to assess how they govern, how their practices compare and how citizens and public servants can advance sound governance.

Research ProjectLatin America Initiative

The Latin America Initiative provides high-quality, in-depth, and independent research across a range of economic and political issues, and offers policy recommendations aimed at U.S. and Latin American policymakers.

Research ProjectBrookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement

The Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement monitors displacement problems worldwide, works with governments, regional bodies, international organizations and civil society to create more effective policies and institutional arrangements for Internally Displaed Persons.

ExpertIsabel V. Sawhill

A nationally known budget expert, Isabel Sawhill focuses on domestic poverty and federal fiscal policy. She is also co-director of the Center on Children and Families at Brookings.

ExpertAmy Liu

Amy Liu is deputy director of the Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program. Her policy studies include economic competitiveness, metropolitan growth and development, governance reforms, urban reinvestment, and social equity.

Policy CenterEngelberg Center for Health Care Reform

The Engelberg Center for Health Care Reform provides practical solutions to achieve high-quality, innovative, affordable health care with particular emphasis on identifying opportunities on the national, state and local levels.

ExpertDomenico Lombardi

As president of the Oxford Institute for Economic Policy, Domenico Lombardi’s work at Brookings focuses on the international financial crisis and the reform of the IMF and the World Bank. He is an expert on G-20 and G8 Summits.

ExpertTed Gayer

Ted Gayer is the co-director of the Economic Studies program and the Joseph A. Pechman Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution. He conducts research on a variety of economic issues, focusing particularly on public finance, environmental and energy economics, housing, and regulatory policy.

ExpertFederiga Bindi

Federiga Bindi is a leading expert on European political integration. She has a broad experience in government and held a number of posts in international organizations. Bindi currently serves as an advisor to the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs. Her research focuses on the EU, transatlantic relations; EU states foreign policies, global governance issues.