Journal of Economic Perspectives
ISSN 0895-3309 (Print) | ISSN 1944-7965 (Online)
The US Individual Income Tax: Recent Evolution and Evidence
Journal of Economic Perspectives
vol. 38,
no. 3, Summer 2024
(pp. 33–60)
(Complimentary)
Abstract
This paper assesses the current state of the US federal individual taxation, and considers its recent evolution, with an emphasis on the changes to the individual income tax enacted in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), and evidence on their impacts. How has the design of the tax changed, and how has this affected tax revenues, the distribution of tax burdens, marginal tax rates, and the breadth of the tax base? What were the rationales for the changes, and what does economics have to contribute to the debate over whether the changes were a good idea? What have we learned so far from empirical research on the impacts of recent changes in individual tax policy, including especially the changes enacted since 2017, and what does this imply for the optimal design of individual taxation?Citation
Bakija, Jon. 2024. "The US Individual Income Tax: Recent Evolution and Evidence." Journal of Economic Perspectives, 38 (3): 33–60. DOI: 10.1257/jep.38.3.33Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- D31 Personal Income, Wealth, and Their Distributions
- D64 Altruism; Philanthropy; Intergenerational Transfers
- H22 Taxation and Subsidies: Incidence
- H24 Personal Income and Other Nonbusiness Taxes and Subsidies; includes inheritance and gift taxes
- H71 State and Local Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue
- K34 Tax Law
- R31 Housing Supply and Markets
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