"How We Survive": Kai Ryssdal visits the frontlines where national security meets climate change. Listen Now

Key differences in the House and Senate tax bills, and who is likely to win

Dec 4, 2017
The Senate and House have now both passed their own versions of a tax bill. Now comes the difficult part — reconciling the differences.
President Donald Trump promised tax cuts for American families this Christmas. Will Congress deliver? 
Alex Wong/Getty Images

Lawmakers vote through sweeping tax changes, but much work lies ahead

Dec 4, 2017
Now that the House and Senate have each passed their own version of a sweeping tax bill, everyone is going to have to work out what the proposed changes means for the rest of us. And the lawmakers have still to iron out some key differences. Click the audio player above to hear the full […]

The GOP's tax reform bill could pass the Senate tonight

Dec 1, 2017
What could final legislation look like?
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky, walks from the Senate chamber to his office today at the Capitol.
Alex Wong/Getty Images

Is this the right time for a tax cut?

Dec 1, 2017
The GOP tax cuts may add about 0.8 percent to GDP growth during the next 10 years, according to several budget models. But that’s economic growth for an economy that’s already heating up. And you know who you call when the economy gets too hot? The Federal Reserve. It’s the Fed’s job to come in […]

How will corporations spend their tax cuts?

Dec 1, 2017
History points to companies spending tax cuts on paying dividends to shareholders.
 Legislation and regulation books related to the GOP's planned tax overhaul are stacked and ready in the House Ways and Means Committee hearing room in Washington, D.C.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

What Congress could learn from Kansas

Nov 30, 2017
Making the rounds on Capitol Hill yesterday was Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback. He was talking up his tax cuts in Kansas from 2012 as a model for the GOP to follow in its national tax plan. Thing is, the five years since those Kansas tax cuts were put in place have not been kind to […]

Congressional tax proposals wouldn't do much to help low-income families with children, study says

Nov 30, 2017
Low-income families with young children wouldn’t see a lot of benefit from the House or Senate tax overhauls, according to a new study from the left-leaning Tax Policy Center. It found the tax cut proposals tilt heavily toward middle- and upper-income families. That’s even if the final version of the tax overhaul increases the child […]

For public good, not for profit.

Senate wrestles with consequences of Paygo Act on the tax reform bill

Nov 29, 2017
It looks like the Senate is going to vote on its ever-in-flux tax plan this week. Even though this bill could add up to $1.5 trillion to the deficit, there are consequences beyond just adding to the national debt. The Senate has something called pay-as-you-go rules, which basically say it has to offset revenue losses […]

Tax think tanks are having a moment

Nov 29, 2017
With Congress working on a tax reform bill, demand for tax theories is way up.
Mark Wilson/Getty Images

For Allstate CEO, the insurance business is all about the severe weather

According to Allstate's Tom Wilson, the weather is getting worse — and it can be see in the damage costs.
Tom Wilson, Allstate's CEO and chairman.
Scott Olson/Getty Images