Analysis: Rep. Paul Ryan's FY 2012 Budget Resolution

Like all congressional budget resolutions, House Budget Committee Chair Paul Ryan's (R-WI) fiscal year (FY) 2012 Budget Resolution is not simply a chart of preferred spending and revenue levels, it's also a political statement guided by ideology. And Ryan's ideology demands that the federal government divert ever increasing sums from middle- and low-income families to big business and high-income families.

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OMB Watch Criticizes House Vote on Estate Tax Amendment

WASHINGTON, Dec. 17, 2010—OMB Watch today criticized the House's Dec. 16 failure to adopt Rep. Earl Pomeroy's (D-ND) estate tax amendment to the Bush tax cut compromise reached by President Obama and congressional Republicans. The vote against the Pomeroy amendment indicates that the nation's fiscal priorities have been cast aside in favor of the estate planning needs of the wealthiest 0.3 percent of Americans.

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OMB Watch Pans Deficit Commission Plan

WASHINGTON, Dec. 1, 2010—OMB Watch today panned the plan proposed by the co-chairs of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform to reshape the nation’s fiscal priorities. While the plan contains some praiseworthy provisions targeted at the tax code and the federal budget process, overall, it represents an unfortunate step backward in meeting the needs of the nation’s working families.

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No Taxation without Information

The idea of providing taxpayers with an itemized receipt for their income taxes was recently proposed by Third Way, a center-left think tank. The proposal, which is not entirely new, has attracted considerable commentary. However, there are significant challenges to creating a simple and engaging taxpayer receipt that would provide meaningful transparency for federal spending.

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Modernization at IRS Could Help Reduce Tax Gap and Shrink Deficit

The estimated $345 billion in revenue that goes uncollected every year is a tempting target for deficit crusaders. However, closing the so-called tax gap is not a cure-all, and attempting to address the problem could create other tax compliance issues. Despite such potential complications, a new report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has found that recent modernizations to the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) computer systems show promise in helping to close the tax gap while avoiding some of the problems that may arise from aggressive tax collection.

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Commentary: The Case for a Strong Estate Tax

On Capitol Hill, there exists a debate about the future of the Bush tax cuts and the federal estate tax. While President Bush's 2001 tax policy eliminated the estate tax for 2010, it is set to return to pre-Bush tax cut levels in 2011 unless Congress intervenes. How Congress chooses to address the estate tax will have significant implications for the federal budget deficit and the fair distribution of the nation’s prosperity.

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Americans for a Fair Estate Tax Urges Senators to Co-Sponsor the Responsible Estate Tax Act

WASHINGTON, July 26, 2010—Americans for a Fair Estate Tax (AFET), a coalition of national and state organizations, sent a letter to the Senate today asking members to co-sponsor the Responsible Estate Tax Act, S. 3533. Over seventy organizations, including major labor, religious, social equity, and good government groups, are urging senators to support the bill. OMB Watch is a member of AFET and signed on to the letter.

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Recent GAO Reports Show Need for Better Data on Tax Expenditures

Two recent reports released by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), which examine the effectiveness of tax credits that target poverty and unemployment in economically distressed areas, show that Congress must require better data collection to properly assess tax expenditure programs.

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President Obama's Progressive Tax Initiatives

When President Obama rolled out his Fiscal Year 2011 budget in early February, many focused attention on the potential negative effects of the administration's proposed three-year freeze on non-security discretionary spending. Moreover, the possible effects of the president’s hawkish rhetoric toward the federal budget deficit dismayed those in the progressive community who are concerned with social equity. However, a detailed examination of the tax section of the president's budget reveals several progressive proposals designed to aid in the fight against poverty and bolster the middle class.

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An OMB Watch Statement on President Obama's Fiscal Year 2011 Budget Request

WASHINGTON, Feb. 2, 2010—President Obama has sent his budget request for fiscal year 2011 to Congress. Far from bringing change, it at best tinkers with federal priorities while perpetuating the wrong budget agenda.

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