The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities was founded in 1981 to take a close look at how various budget choices have affected the lives of low-income Americans. Since then the center has continued to grow more expansive, covering budget priorities at the state level as well. First-time visitors to the site will find a host of materials of note, including a number of “Issues In Depth” special...

Yesterday, the US Senate narrowly approved a $792 billion tax cut, 50-49. The bill, which was passed by the House with a vote of 221-206, would, among other things, cut all five income tax rates by one percentage point, lower capital gains rates, and eliminate death taxes on estates. The bill will not be sent to President Clinton -- who opposes the size of the cut and favors using the projected...

As part of its mandate under the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the US Congressional Budget Office issues "a series of reports on the state of the economy and the budget." The latest report, released September 2, 1997 concludes that "the federal budget will come close to balance this year and will move into surplus by 2002... [and] is projected to be in virtual balance through 2007." The report...

An affiliate of the Institute of Business and Economic Research at the University of California, Berkeley, the Robert D. Burch Center for Tax Policy and Public Finance aims to promote, disseminate, and stimulate "informed discussion of tax policies of national significance." The site hosts Burch Center Working Papers in full-text (1995-present) in addition to recent conference paper abstracts,...

The Economic Security and Recovery Act of 2001 (Bill HR3090) was approved by the House Ways and Means Committee on October 12 and will be brought to the floor for approval soon. On October 16, the Bush Administration stated that the tax cut bill, with its provisions for over $70 billion in tax cuts to companies and nearly $29 billion to individuals, goes too far. All over Washington, critics and...

The long-term fiscal outlook of the United States is the subject of this probing and insightful paper released by The Brookings Institution and the Heritage Foundation in April 2008. Authored by a group of scholars and experts who span the ideological spectrum, they all share "a deep concern about the nation's long-term fiscal outlook." They seem to agree on a number of things, including that...