18Taxation How it Works and What it Means（课件）- 《财政与金融》同步教学（人民大学·第五版）

18 18.1 Types of Taxation 18.2 Structure of the Individual Income Tax in the United States 18.3 Measuring the Fairness of Tax Systems 18.4 Defining the Income Tax Base 18.5 Externality/Public Goods Rationales for Deviating from Haig-Simons 18.6 The Appropriate Family Unit of Taxation 18.7 Conclusion Taxation: How it Works and What it Means 1 of 53 1 of 53 C H A P T E R 1 8 ■ T A X A T I O N : H O W I T W O R K S A N D W H A T I T M E A N S of 53 C H A P T E R 1 8 ■ T A X A T I O N : H O W I T W O R K S A N D W H A T I T M E A N S 2 18.1 In January, 2001, President George W. Bush was faced with a rare opportunity: a projected federal budget surplus. Bush quickly decided that the government should use this surplus to lower the federal tax burden. Tax rates lowered across the board, with rates falling from 15%–39.6% to 10%–35%. Estate tax was phased out. These cuts were further extended by the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 which lowered the maximum tax rate on stock dividend and capital gains income, and increased deductions from the corporate tax. Introduction of 53 C H A P T E R 1 8 ■ T A X A T I O N : H O W I T W O R K S A N D W H A T I T M E A N S 3 18.1 Unfortunately, by the time President Bush left office this surplus had become a very large deficit. An ongoing debate throughout the Obama presidency was whether and how to end the Bush tax cuts. Obama stated tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans are the tax cuts that are least likely to promote growth. Republicans argued that higher taxes in the midst of a recession would hurt the economy further by punishing job-creating small businesses that pay taxes under the individual income tax code. Introduction of 53 C H A P T E R 1 8 ■ T A X A T I O N : H O W I T W O R K S A N D W H A T I T M E A N S 4 18.1 Ultimately, both sides compromised: The tax cuts were extended for another two years. When they expired (again) in 2012, a compromise