Revenue & Spending

Feb 8, 2016

Top 400 Taxpayers See Tax Rates Rise, But There’s More to the Story

As Americans were gathering party supplies to greet the New Year, the Internal Revenue Service released their annual report of cumulative tax data reported on the 400 tax r...

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Feb 4, 2016

Chlorine Bleach Plants Needlessly Endanger 63 Million Americans

Chlorine bleach plants across the U.S. put millions of Americans in danger of a chlorine gas release, a substance so toxic it has been used as a chemical weapon. Greenpeace’s new repo...

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Jan 25, 2016

U.S. Industrial Facilities Reported Fewer Toxic Releases in 2014

The Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data for 2014 is now available. The good news: total toxic releases by reporting facilities decreased by nearly six percent from 2013 levels. Howe...

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Jan 22, 2016

Methane Causes Climate Change. Here's How the President Plans to Cut Emissions by 40-45 Percent.

UPDATE (Jan. 22, 2016): Today, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released its proposed rule to reduce methane emissions...

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Estate Tax Rally and Lobbying Day -- May 10, 2001

Nonprofits to Preserve the Estate Tax and Responsible Wealth sponsored a noon rally at the Capitol on Thursday, May 10, 2001. Between 200-300 people took part in the rally and we visited all 100 Senate offices and had meetings with nearly half of them. Speakers

Senator Kent Conrad (D-SD)
Senator Jon Corzine (D-NJ)
Bill Gates, Sr.
Marian Wright Edelman, Founder and President, Children's Defense Fund
Gerald McEntee, President, AFSCME
Robert Rowher, Iowa farmer, member, National Farmers Union

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Analysis of What Happened to the Estate Tax in June 2001

OMB Watch analysis of the significance of the estate tax repeal language signed into law as part of President Bush's June 2001 $1.35 trillion tax cut. The tax bill the President will sign next week will represent only a symbolic victory with regard to repealing the estate tax. (Read the full text of the bill, H.R. 1836 Conference Report)

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Newspaper and magazine articles profiling the estate tax repeal debate -- 2001

When Local Control Goes Out of Control: Ouch! A Taxing Lesson for the Nation's States (Post, David J. Barron and Eric M. Zolt, 7/15/01) A Tax Break's Unfortunate Legacy (Post, Letter by William H. Gates, Sr., 5/25/01) Focus on Farms Masks Estate Tax Confusion (NYT, 4/8/01) Dead Wrong: They're Lying and They Know It (Post, Michael Kinsley, 4/6/01) A Sensible Tax on Fortunes (NYT, Opinion, 3/22/01) Gates, Sr.

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Letter to the House Judiciary Committee on the Internet Nondiscrimination Tax

OMB Watch weighed in on the "Internet Tax Nondiscrimination Tax" considered by the House Judiciary Committee in September, 2001. September 18, 2001 House Judiciary Committee U.S. House of Representatives Washington, DC 20515, Dear Representative:

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Legislative Action on the Estate Tax in the 106th and 107th Congresses

A list of bills introduced into the 106th and 107th Congresses. Action on the Estate Tax by the 107th Congress

Action on Final Estate Tax Language in 2001 Tax Cut Debate
- Estate Tax Preserved: Victory for America's Charities. Although both the House and the Senate (58-33) passed the $1.35 trillion tax bill, the tax cuts, including the repeal of the estate tax, will only be in effect until December 31, 2010. (5/26/01)
- S. Amdt. 781 - Estate Tax Reform Amendment proposed by Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND) (5/22/01)

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Estate Tax Data & Terminology

Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and Congress’ Joint Committee on Taxation data and reports on the estate tax and OMB Watch explanations of key elements of the estate tax policy.

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Calculating the Estate Tax

The following provides a general overview of how the federal government calculates an estate’s tax liability and the many options the tax code provides for reducing an estate’s overall tax liability. This information is intended to serve as an introduction to the estate tax and should not be considered as legal or financial advice.

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What Are Marginal Tax Rates?

Debates over federal tax policy can be complicated enough. This explanation of "marginal tax rates" tries to sort through one element of taxes that is often used to exaggerate tax rates. Marginal tax rates are the set percentage rates that kick in at different income levels, as opposed to the actual overall percentage of taxes that are paid on income. Marginal Tax Rate Single Filer Income 15 % Less than $26,250 28 % $26,251 - 63,550 31 % $63,551 - 132,600 36 % $132,601 - 288,350 39.6 % More than $288,351

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Americans for a Fair Estate Tax

OMB Watch is a member of the Americans for a Fair Estate Tax coalition. Please visit the coalition website or click on a category to the left for more information on the estate tax.

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