Law Commons^™

On Tax Increase Limitations: Part I - A Costly Incoherence, David Gamage, Darien Shanske

David Gamage

In this essay, the first of a series, we explore the theoretical implications of one particular type of fiscal limitation on state legislatures - namely, special rules limiting tax increases. In this first essay we will explore the analytic soundness of these tax increase limitations (TILs). In future essays in this series we will analyze some of the consequences of TILs and in particular how they can be 'evaded.' We will argue over the course of this series of essays that because there is no meaningful content to the term 'tax increase' as it is used in TILs, legislative majorities …

Taxation And Non-Discrimination: A Reconsideration, Hugh J. Ault, Jacques Sasseville

Hugh J. Ault

No abstract provided.

The New Application Of Transferee Liability, Robert D. Probasco

Robert Probasco

No abstract provided.

The Case For Reducing The Market Salience Of Taxation, David Gamage, Darien Shanske

David Gamage

This paper considers a narrow but important question that has arisen in the literature on tax salience. Contrary to the predictions of neoclassical economic theory, a number of studies have demonstrated that, in response to certain presentations of tax prices, consumers do not always fully factor tax costs into their market decisions. This result indicates that policy makers could opt for tax price presentation techniques that would reduce the market salience of taxation, thereby likely also reducing the deadweight loss otherwise caused by taxpayers distorting their behavior to avoid taxation. Assuming that these experimental results are sound, and bracketing the …

Tefra Audits And Refund Claims, Robert D. Probasco

Robert Probasco

No abstract provided.

Systemic Problems With Low-Dollar Lien Filing, T. Keith Fogg

T. Keith Fogg

This article explains why the IRS policy of filing the notice of federal tax lien based primarily on a dollar criteria puts low-income taxpayers, who usually have low-dollar liens, in a worse position. It also proposes improvements on the current system.

Who Is Making International Tax Policy? International Organizations As Power Players In A High Stakes World, Diane M. Ring

Diane M. Ring

Who makes international tax policy in today’s world? Certainly no single body possesses that power - there is no global tax authority, and states are not capable of achieving all of their international tax policy goals on a unilateral basis. The development of international tax policy is an interactive and dynamic process that involves a wide range of players, most of whom can be characterized as international organizations. Their roles, goals, tools and influence vary by organization and by issue, but their net impact on tax policy is undeniable. If we are to better understand how tax policy is formed, …

The Promise Of International Tax Scholarship And Its Implications For Research Design, Theory And Methodology, Diane M. Ring

Diane M. Ring

What should international tax scholars be doing? Over the past two decades, international tax has grown both as a practice area and as a field of study. Scholars have begun devoting significant attention to the development, design, and implementation of international tax law. This activity is accompanied by a reflection on the scholarship and its goals, method and content. A review of modern international tax scholarship reveals that as the field has matured, international tax scholars have increasingly turned to other disciplines, especially social sciences, to draw upon their insights, ideas, and research to improve understanding of international tax policy. …

Why Happiness?: A Commentary On Griffith's Progressive Taxation And Happiness, Diane M. Ring

Diane M. Ring

This Commentary examines three issues raised in Professor Thomas D. Griffith's Article on the connection between progressive taxation and subjective well-being, focusing on the selection of happiness as the measure of the gains of redistribution, the ability to measure happiness or subjective well-being, and the implications of using happiness analysis in determining tax policy. After arguing that the progressive taxation debate would benefit from further exploration of why happiness is the appropriate measure of success, this Commentary raises concerns about relying on self-reporting of subjective well-being and how happiness studies should be interpreted and can be improved. Finally, this Commentary …

Tax Compliance And The Love Molecule, Susan Morse

Susan Cleary Morse

If oxytocin is the source of human reciprocity, then perhaps storytelling that evokes close human relationships is the key to using reciprocity to further tax compliance.

Comments On Procedures Regarding Ex Parte Communications With Appeals, Robert D. Probasco, Joel N. Crouch, Stephanie D. Mongiello

Robert Probasco

Tired Of Herding Cats? Re-Image Your Law Library With Erm Best Practices, Gordon R. Russell

Gordon R. Russell

Keynote Address: Tired of Herding Cats? Re-image Your Law Library with ERM Best Practices.

Testamentary Substitutes—A Time For Statutory Clarification, Sidney Kwestel, Rena Seplowitz

Rena C. Seplowitz

No abstract provided.

Library Unbound: The Convergence Of E-Books, Electronic Access And New Aba Library Standards Are Transforming The Law Library, Gordon R. Russell

Gordon R. Russell

No abstract provided.

International Law And Transnational Corporations: Towards A Final Summation, Varun Vaish

Varun Vaish

The regulation of transnational corporations (TNCs) by an international legal order fundamentally centred on states proves to be difficult when they exercise political influence and have the ability to generate revenue which can eclipse the economies of many countries in comparison. According to the World Investment Report 2007, as of 2006 there were 78,411 parent corporations and 777,647 affiliates worldwide.4 The scale of the concentration of economic power is illustrated by the statistics: of the world’s hundred largest economic entities, 51 are multinational companies and 49 are nation states. The Texaco Corporation functioned for years in Ecuador with annual global …

Quoted In The Fort Worth Business Press On Fraudulent Tax Returns Surge, Robert D. Probasco

Robert Probasco

No abstract provided.

Testamentary Substitutes—A Time For Statutory Clarification, Sidney Kwestel, Rena Seplowitz

Sidney Kwestel

No abstract provided.

The U.S. Consumption Tax: Evolution, Not Revolution, Daniel Goldberg

Daniel S. Goldberg

The article expresses the view that the current Internal Revenue Code has evolved into a hybrid income tax and consumption tax. It begins by explaining the difference between an income tax and a consumption tax and provides the backgrounds of the alternative forms of consumption tax: (1) consumed income, (2) yield exemption, and (3) point-of-sale taxation. Under the consumed income tax model of consumption tax, the individual taxpayer includes all items of income, both from labor and from capital, in its tax base, and then subtracts or deducts the portion of that income that he saves or invests. The resulting …

Government Precommitment To Tax Incentive Subsidies: The Impact Of United States V. Winstar Corp. On Retroactive Tax Legislation, Daniel S. Goldberg

Daniel S. Goldberg

No abstract provided.

Interest Elements In Tax Planning, Daniel S. Goldberg

Daniel S. Goldberg

This article discusses how interest has been and is being used in tax planning. The tax planning techniques using interest include charging too little interest or none at all, recalssifying interest as principal and allocating interest among time periods to optimize the tax consequences to the parties. The issues raised by these tax planning techniques go to the heart of the tax system. They suggest inadequacies in the development of the case law and in conventional tax thinking. The unifying principal is the divergence between the possible tax consequences and the clear economic consequences of each of the transactions. The …

E Tax: The Flat Tax As An Electronic Credit Vat, Daniel S. Goldberg

Daniel S. Goldberg

The article builds on the Hall-Rabushka Flat Tax and proposes a consumption tax called the “E Tax,” which is an electronically collected credit invoice VAT. The Hall-Rabushka Flat Tax is a two-tier consumption tax that is based on a subtraction method VAT. The Hall-Rabushka nuance, however, allows a deduction for wages as if they were purchases of materials by the employer. Wage earners would be taxed on those wages at rates that could be set as graduated or flat, with or without a zero rate or bracket amount and with or without personal exemptions and deductions. Hall and Rabushka proposed …

Considering A Consumption Tax, Daniel S. Goldberg

Daniel S. Goldberg

A combination of electronic commerce and the "Flat Tax" could eliminate the IRS as we know it.

The Kingdom Of Pal: A Parable Of Tax Shelters And The Passive Activity Loss Rules, Daniel S. Goldberg

Daniel S. Goldberg

No abstract provided.

Nonrecourse Debt In Excess Of Fair Market Value: The Confluence Of Basis, Realization, Subchapter K And The Need For Consistency, Daniel S. Goldberg

Daniel S. Goldberg

No abstract provided.

Open Transaction Treatment For Deferred Payment Sales After The Installment Sales Act Of 1980, Daniel S. Goldberg

Daniel S. Goldberg

No abstract provided.

The Tax Treatment Of Limited Liability Companies: Law In Search Of Policy, Daniel S. Goldberg

Daniel S. Goldberg

No abstract provided.

E-Vat: An Electronically Collected Progressive Consumption Tax, Daniel S. Goldberg

Daniel S. Goldberg

This report proposes replacing the income tax with an electronic, progressive consumption tax that couples a credit-method VAT (modified for wages) with a progressive wage tax. I have called this proposal e-VAT (a convenient contraction for an electronic value added tax), because it is based on a business-level-credit VAT and can be collected automatically and electronically at the point of sale. The essential advantage of e-VAT over the Hall-Rabushka flat tax is that e-VAT’s use of a credit VAT as its foundation facilitates automatic and electronic collection of the tax. A credit VAT lends itself to electronic monitoring and auditing …

E-Tax: Fundamental Tax Reform And The Transition To A Currency-Free Economy, Daniel S. Goldberg

Daniel S. Goldberg

No abstract provided.

The Aches And Pains Of Transition To A Consumption Tax: Can We Get There From Here?, Daniel S. Goldberg

Daniel S. Goldberg

This article discusses probably the most significant obstacle to the adoption of a consumption tax: the negative effects on existing wealth that the transition from the income tax to most forms of a consumption tax would have. The Congressional Budget Office in its 1997 study posed the question, “How to Get There from Here.” The difficulty with transition and the changes in the tax law since the CBO study, however, prompt the more basic question: “Can we get there from here?” This article deals with this question by examining the effects of transition on existing wealth under a variety of …

Fair Market Value In The Tax Law: Replacement Value Or Liquidation Value, Daniel Goldberg

Daniel S. Goldberg

No abstract provided.