Leonard E. Burman

Sep 24, 2024 | taxexpenditures.org | Leonard E. Burman

By Leonard E. Burman | Tax Policy Center This blog was first published by the Tax Policy Center, Urban Institute & Brookings Institution. If this year’s presidential candidates have their way, lots of income will no longer be subject to federal tax. Donald Trump would exempt overtime pay from tax. Kamala Harris and Trump both agree that tips should be exempt. To be fair, there are lots of tax exclusions in the code already.

Jan 4, 2024 | taxpolicycenter.org | Leonard E. Burman

A recent hearing of the House Ways and Means Committee’s Subcommittee on Tax Policy brought attention to an important topic: How can the tax code spur economic growth while sharing the gains broadly? My testimony at the hearing detailed how to achieve that goal while avoiding proposals that could do more harm than good. For an example of one such proposal, the hearing considered replacing our current tax system with a national retail sales tax.

Dec 27, 2023 | taxpolicycenter.org | Leonard E. Burman |Robert McClelland |Livia Mucciolo |Safia Sayed

May 11, 2023 | taxpolicycenter.org | Leonard E. Burman

Republican leaders in Congress have refused to raise the federal debt limit unless the Biden Administration agrees to major spending reductions to reduce the national debt, such as draconian cuts proposed in the Limit, Save, Grow Act. While concerns about the unsustainable rise in the debt are understandable, this proposed solution ignores the biggest contributors to the debt explosion—unbridled growth in Medicare and Social Security and a penchant for giant tax cuts.

Jan 19, 2023 | brookings.edu | Leonard E. Burman |William G. Gale

There is a legal maximum on how much debt the federal government can accumulate—often called the “debt ceiling” or the “debt limit.” According to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, the government will hit the current limit in a few days. Using a variety of accounting tricks (like temporarily diverting government pension funds), the government can postpone the day when it cannot pay its bills but only for a few months.