To Work or Not To Work

Image: The Cagle Post

Does our current tax system incentivize single earner households?  This op-ed piece in the New York Times discusses the subsidies or tax breaks that may make not working, work.

Australia's Toxic Tax Talk

PolitiFact Australia

I think that the US doesn't talk enough about climate change, but in Australia the conversation is ruining people's political careers. The Guardian discusses a long fight between leaders regarding a carbon tax - some are calling it the "Toxic Tax."

Vetoing Missouri Tax Cuts

Texas Governor, Rick Perry fighting Missouri Governor, Jay Nixon. Photo: stltoday.com.

This is a really interesting article on the Governor's fight to veto a tax cut in Missouri.  It brings up issues surrounding the view that tax cuts (which will impact education and health funding) will spur job growth - and Rick Perry even makes a cameo appearance in the fight.  

Taxable Imputed Rent

I had no idea what "imputed rent" meant but it is basically the rent you would be paying if, instead of owning, you were renting the place you lived.  This article in The New York Times explains what would happen if that imputed rent were taxed.  While at first that seems crazy (you have to pay a mortgage, maintenance, and mostly you buy a home to avoid renting) it turns out that it kind of makes sense.  Since if you have a mortgage, that amount would be tax deductible anyway, for most people, the taxable imputed rent would most likely be quite small, but for those who don't have a mortgage, and are no longer contributing to the housing market, a tax on the rent they don't have to pay sort of makes sense, sort of.  This article goes into terms we discussed last night, like efficiency, equity, etc to evaluate this idea.  And, as with most things, other countries already do this.

Uneven Economies

Looks like the world is not growing together.  Not super surprising, but the extent of it is pretty amazing. The OECD has published GDP growth in major economies and shown that there is wide variation between countries. The New York Times has the full article.