Congressional Research Service Reports - 834 Matching Results
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- State and Local Sales and Use Taxes and Internet Commerce
- No Description Available.
- A History of Federal Estate, Gift, and Generation-Skipping Taxes
- Three primary categories of legislation pertaining to transfer taxes have been introduced in the 110th Congress. As noted above, the repeal of the estate and generation-skipping taxes is not permanent. One category would make the repeal permanent. (See, H.R. 411 and H.R. 2380). Another category would accelerate the repeal of these transfer taxes. (See, H.R. 25, H.R. 1040, H.R. 1586, H.R. 4042, S. 1025, S. 1040, and S. 1081). The third would reinstate these taxes at lower rates and/or in a manner more considerate of family-owned business. (See, H.R. 1928, H.R. 3170, H.R. 3475, H.R. 4172, H.R. 4235, H.R. 4242, and S. 1994). In this report, the history of the federal transfer taxes has been divided into four parts: (1) the federal death and gift taxes used between 1789 and 1915; (2) the development, from 1916 through 1975, of the modern estate and gift taxes; (3) the creation and refinement of a unified estate and gift tax system, supplemented by a generation-skipping transfer tax; and (4) the phaseout and repeal of the estate and generation-skipping taxes, with the gift tax being retained as a device to protect the integrity of the income tax.
- A History of Federal Estate, Gift, and Generation-Skipping Taxes
- This report details the history of the three federal transfer taxes, tracing their development from their 18th-century roots to the present.
- State and Local Sales and Use Taxes and Internet Commerce
- In theory, state sales and use taxes are consumption taxes based on the destination principle. The destination principle prescribes that taxes should be paid where the consumption takes place. Sales taxes collected at the point of sale achieve this if consumption takes place near the point of transaction. Thus, to remain consistent with the destination principle, consumers pay a use tax on products purchased out-of-state and used in their home state where consumption likely takes place.
- 2012 Farm Bill: Changing the Treatment of LIHEAP Receipt in the Calculation of SNAP Benefits
- This report describes the contents of the 2012 Farm Bill, cost reducing measures in the Farm Bill, and the implications of both of these. Specifically, the report focuses on SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) which is a cost saving measure that addresses how certain deductions from income will be calculated.
- The 2001 and 2003 Bush Tax Cuts and Deficit Reduction
- This report uses the context of the current and long-term economic environment to examine the tax cuts implemented by the George W. Bush Administration, including the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 and the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003.
- 1099 Information Reporting Requirements and Penalties as Modified by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010
- This report discuses the 2010 expansion of reporting requirements listed in IRC (Internal Revenue Code) 6041. The controversy in these expansions lies in the burden the expansion imposes on small businesses. The report also describes the pieces of legislation that have amended IRC 6041, and the implications of that legislation along with the consequences of IRC 6041.
- State and Local Sales and Use Taxes and Internet Commerce
- In theory, state sales and use taxes are based on the destination principle, which prescribes that taxes should be paid where the consumption takes place. States are concerned because they anticipate gradually losing more tax revenue as the growth of Internet commerce allows more residents to buy products from vendors located out-of-state and evade use taxes. The size of the revenue loss from Internet commerce and subsequent tax evasion is uncertain. Congress is involved in this issue because commerce conducted by parties in different states over the Internet falls under the Commerce Clause of the Constitution. The degree of congressional involvement is an open question.
- The Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement: A Brief Description
- No Description Available.
- The Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement: A Brief Description
- No Description Available.
- What Effects Would the Expiration of the 2001 and 2003 Tax Cuts Have on the Economy?
- In 2001 and 2003, Congress enacted major tax cuts (popularly referred to as the "Bush tax cuts"), the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 and the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003. Congress is currently debating whether to extend some or all of these tax cuts that are scheduled to expire at the end of 2010. This report discusses the two main economic arguments against allowing the tax cuts to expire as scheduled, using historical evidence and by examining the current economic environment.
- Internet Taxation: Issues and Legislation
- The Internet Tax Freedom Act (ITFA) placed a three-year moratorium on the ability of state and local governments to (1) impose new taxes on Internet access or (2) impose any multiple or discriminatory taxes on electronic commerce. The act grandfathered the state and local access taxes that were “... generally imposed and actually enforced prior to October 1, 1998 ....” This report discusses issues of state and local taxation of Internet transactions because commerce conducted by parties in different states over the Internet.
- Internet Tax Bills in the 105th Congress
- This report tracks the evolution and content of the Internet tax freedom bills. In general, the bills would impose a federal moratorium on the ability of state and local governments to impose taxes on certain aspects of the Internet and would establish a temporary federal commission to study selected issues and make policy recommendations.
- Expired and Expiring Temporary Tax Provisions (“Tax Extenders”)
- No Description Available.
- Additional Standard Tax Deduction for the Blind: A Description and Assessment
- This report covers the history, reasoning, and current policy that surrounds tax deductions for the blind. Moreover, the report highlights the current policy (as of May 7th 2008) as one that recognizes the higher cost of living for a blind person because many blind taxpayers have low incomes. However, the report points out that because of this many of them have access to an additional deduction for being in a lower income bracket.
- Residential Energy Tax Credits: Overview and Analysis
- This report discusses current residential energy tax credits, options to extend or modify them, and an analysis of their effectiveness.
- The Individual Mandate for Health Insurance Coverage: In Brief
- This report provides an overview of the individual mandate, its associated penalty, and the exemptions from the mandate. It discusses the ACA reporting requirements designed, in part, to assist individuals in providing evidence of having met the mandate. The report includes some national- and state-level data on the application of the mandate's penalty in tax year (TY) 2014 and TY2015.
- Agriculture in the Next Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations
- This report discusses the objective of agricultural negotiations in the World Trade Organizations (WTO) in 2001 to create trade reform. The Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture (URAA) established a new set of rules for the conduct of agricultural trade that the report also considers.
- Federal Deductibility of State and Local Taxes
- This report addresses the potential impact of changing the status of federal deductibility on state and local government tax systems, individual taxpayers, and the federal budget.
- Business Organizational Choices: Taxation and Responses to Legislative Changes
- This report summarizes the general tax treatment of corporate and pass-through businesses and analyzes the most recent business data from the Internal Revenue Service(IRS).
- Energy Tax Policy
- This report brief discusses the history, current posture, and outlook for federal energy tax policy.
- Expired and Expiring Temporary Tax Provisions (“Tax Extenders”)
- No Description Available.
- An Analysis of Tax Provisions Affecting Business Investment: Depreciation and the Investment Tax Credit
- This report discusses tax laws related to depreciation and business investment.
- Major Tax Issues in the 105th Congress: A Summary
- Taxes are again a focus of policy debate in during the first part of 1998. Many in Congress favor a tax cut, although the size of a possible cut is under discussion. Another issue is whether a tax cut should be offset by spending cuts and revenue raisers or instead financed by the expected budget surpluses -- in effect returning the surpluses to taxpayers in a manner similar to a rebate.
- Major Tax Issues in the 106th Congress: A Summary
- Taxes have been a major focus of congressional attention during the first half of 2000. In part, Congress has returned to many of the issues it addressed last year. In August, 1999, Congress passed a set of tax cuts with the Taxpayer Refund and Relief Act (H.R. 2488; TRRA). However, President Clinton vetoed the bill, arguing that the cuts were too large (an estimated $792 billion over 10 years), would drain funds from Social Security surpluses, and would force reductions in domestic spending. Early in 2000, Congress signaled its intention of revisiting tax cuts with passage on April 13 of a fiscal year (FY) 2001 budget resolution (H.Con.Res. 290) calling for a 5-year tax cut of $175 billion.
- Recent Tax Changes Affecting Installment Sales
- On December 17, 1999, President Clinton signed the Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999 (H.R. 1180; P.L. 106-170). This Act contained revenue provisions extending several popular tax benefits such as the work opportunity tax credit, the welfare to work tax credit, and the applicability of the nonrefundable personal tax credits to the individual alternative minimum tax. To pay for the extension of these tax benefits the Act also included several tax changes that increased revenue. Among these revenue offset provisions was a modification and limitation on the use of the installment method of reporting asset sales for taxpayers who normally use the accrual method of accounting.
- Major Tax Issues in the 107th Congress
- Tax cuts have been one of the principal issues Congress has addressed in the first part of 2001. In part, this issue continues a debate that occurred through 1999 and 2000, as the federal budget began to register surpluses for the first time in nearly 30 years.
- Across-the-Board Tax Cuts: Economic Issues
- This report examines economic issues relating to across-the-board tax cuts, focusing primarily on distributional issues. The report is divided into four sections. The first section provides a general overview of the tax system. The next discusses recent proposals relating to across-the-board tax cuts. The third section discusses methods of evaluating alternative types of across-the-board tax cuts. The final section briefly discusses issues of efficiency, simplicity, and stabilization policy.
- Taxes to Finance Superfund
- Since its reauthorization in 1986 through December 31, 1995, the Hazardous Substance Superfund, which was first created in 1980, has been financed largely by the revenues generated from three excise taxes on petroleum and chemicals and a special income tax on corporations.
- 501(c)(4)s and the Gift Tax: Legal Analysis
- This report discusses whether substantial donations to tax-exempt 501(c)(4) organizations are subject to the federal gift tax.
- The Marriage Tax Penalty: An Overview of the Issues
- No Description Available.
- Major Tax Issues in the 107th Congress
- No Description Available.
- Across-the-Board Tax Cuts: Economic Issues
- This report examines economic issues relating to across-the-board tax cuts, focusing primarily on distributional issues. The report is divided into four sections. The first section provides a general overview of the tax system. The next discusses recent proposals relating to across-the-board tax cuts. The third section discusses methods of evaluating alternative types of across-the-board tax cuts. The final section briefly discusses issues of efficiency, simplicity, and stabilization policy.
- H.R. 8: The Death Tax Elimination Act of 2001
- No Description Available.
- Major Tax Issues in the 106th Congress: A Summary
- No Description Available.
- Recent Trends in the Federal Tax Burden
- No Description Available.
- The Marriage Tax Penalty: An Overview of the Issues
- No Description Available.
- The Marriage Tax Penalty: An Overview of the Issues
- No Description Available.
- Marriage Tax Penalties: Legislative Proposals in the 106th Congress
- No Description Available.
- Major Tax Issues in the 108th Congress
- No Description Available.
- Major Tax Issues in the 108th Congress
- No Description Available.
- Major Tax Issues in the 109th Congress
- Congress considered a variety of tax issues over the course of 2004. Some of these were relatively narrow, applying to particular sectors or activities: energy taxation, charitable giving and charities, Internet taxation, tax shelters, and a variety of expiring tax benefits that apply to particular investments or activities. More prominent, however, were two more general issues that were the focus of tax policy deliberations for much of the year: domestic and international business taxation; and the extension of temporary tax cuts for individuals that were initially enacted in 2001 and in 2003.
- The Potential Distributional Effects of the Alternative Minimum Tax
- No Description Available.
- The Alternative Minimum Tax for Individuals: Legislative Initiatives and Their Revenue Effects
- This report discusses legislative initiatives regarding the alternative minimum tax (AMT) for individuals, which was originally enacted to ensure that all taxpayers, especially high-income taxpayers, paid at least a minimum amount of federal taxes.
- The Alternative Minimum Tax for Individuals
- This report provides a brief overview of the alternative minimum tax (AMT) for individuals, discusses the issues associated with the current system, and describes current legislation to amend the AMT. The report will be updated as legislative action warrants.
- The Alternative Minimum Tax for Individuals
- This report provides a brief overview of the alternative minimum tax (AMT) for individuals, discusses the issues associated with the current system, and describes current legislation to amend the AMT. The report will be updated as legislative action warrants.
- The Alternative Minimum Tax for Individuals
- This report provides a brief overview of the alternative minimum tax (AMT) for individuals, discusses the issues associated with the current system, and describes current legislation to amend the AMT. The report will be updated as legislative action warrants.
- The Alternative Minimum Tax for Individuals
- This report provides a brief overview of the alternative minimum tax (AMT) for individuals, discusses the issues associated with the current system, and describes current legislation to amend the AMT. The report will be updated as legislative action warrants.
- 2001 Tax Cut: Description, Analysis, and Background
- A major tax cut, H.R. 1836, was enacted in June 2001, but contained sunsetted provisions. The House will consider, the week of April 15, making those tax provisions permanent. This report summarizes the provisions of the bill, analyzes effects, and considers the development of the legislation.
- 2001 Tax Cut: Description, Analysis, and Background
- A major tax cut, the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act (EGTRRA), was enacted in June 2001. This report summarizes the provisions of the bill, analyzes effects, and considers the development of the legislation.