乔纳森·格鲁伯-财政学（第五版）gruber_5e_lecture_slides_ch18.pptxVIP

Copyright ? 2010 Worth Publishers 18Heather Luea and Dan SacksP R E P A R E D B Y18.1 Types of Taxation18.2 Structure of the Individual Income Tax in the United States18.3 Measuring the Fairness of Tax Systems18.4 Defining the Income Tax Base18.5 Externality/Public Goods Rationales for Deviating from Haig-Simons18.6 The Appropriate Family Unit of Taxation18.7 ConclusionTaxation: How it Works and What it Means 18.1In January, 2001, President George W. Bush was faced with a rare opportunity: a projected federal budget surplus. Bush quickly decided that the government should use this surplus to lower the federal tax burden.Tax rates lowered across the board, with rates falling from 15%–39.6% to 10%–35%. Estate tax was phased out. These cuts were further extended by the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 which lowered the maximum tax rate on stock dividend and capital gains income, and increased deductions from the corporate tax.Introduction 18.1Unfortunately, by the time President Bush left office this surplus had become a very large deficit.An ongoing debate throughout the Obama presidency was whether and how to end the Bush tax cuts. Obama stated tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans are the tax cuts that are least likely to promote growth. Republicans argued that higher taxes in the midst of a recession would hurt the economy further by punishing job-creating small businesses that pay taxes under the individual income tax code. Introduction 18.1Ultimately, both sides compromised: The tax cuts were extended for another two years.When they expired (again) in 2012, a compromise was reached through the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012. Introduction 18.1The American Taxpayer Relief Act:Made permanent all tax cuts for households making under $450,000; Above $450,000, tax cuts expired and top tax rate increased from 35% to 39.6%. Tax deductions and tax credits began to be phased out for those making over $250,000 or $300,000, for individuals