IMF Working Papers

U.S. Tax Reform: An Overview of the Current Debate and Policy Options

ByThomas Dalsgaard

July 1, 2005

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Format: Chicago

Thomas Dalsgaard. "U.S. Tax Reform: An Overview of the Current Debate and Policy Options", IMF Working Papers 2005, 138 (2005), accessed 12/8/2025, https://doi.org/10.5089/9781451861570.001

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Disclaimer: This Working Paper should not be reported as representing the views of the IMF.The views expressed in this Working Paper are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent those of the IMF or IMF policy. Working Papers describe research in progress by the author(s) and are published to elicit comments and to further debate

Summary

In the context of the current tax policy debate in the United States, this paper reviews and discusses some of the main recurrent themes, as well as some of the most important tax reform proposals put forward over the past two decades. It finds that although there seems to be widespread agreement that the current tax system is too complex, unfair, and distortionary, little or no consensus exists on how best to improve it.

Subject: Consumption taxes, Corporate income tax, Income, Income and capital gains taxes, Income tax systems

Keywords: alternative minimum tax, income tax, revenue, tax, VAT, WP