The Deduction

What happens when voters decide tax policy directly? This November, roughly 40 tax measures are on the ballot across 17 states. Some states want higher taxes on top earners, others want to write low rates into their constitutions, and Missouri voters will decide whether to start a fund that could one day replace every state tax.

Joining Kyle and Erica is Janelle Fritts, Senior Policy Analyst at the Tax Foundation. Together, they break down the measures worth watching, from property tax relief to new rules for how taxes get passed.

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California's billionaire tax is on the ballot this November, and it raises more questions than answers. From lost government revenue to legal battles that could drag on for years, what would this first-in-the-nation wealth tax actually do?

Hosts Kyle Hulehan and Erica York are joined by Tax Foundation Senior Fellow Jared Walczak to break down what the measure could mean for California's budget, economy, and taxpayers. They cover the risk to state revenue that funds public education, the effects on businesses and startups, the valuation and constitutional challenges ahead, why wealth taxes failed across Europe, and whether California would ever collect a dime.

0:00 Preview: What if California has to refund it all?
0:15 What is California's Billionaire Tax Act (Prop 40)?
2:30 Lessons from Europe: Why 11 of 14 wealth taxes were repealed
4:40 Why are wealth taxes so hard to enforce?
7:00 Legal vulnerabilities: Retroactivity and snapshot residency
10:45 Commerce Clause problems: Apportionment and fair relation
12:50 Has the U.S. ever had a wealth tax?
15:05 Economic effects: Taxing stocks vs. flows
18:20 Does "one-time" really mean one time?
20:55 The cost of billionaire migration and lost innovation
21:20 Can California actually administer this tax?
22:50 Steep penalties for taxpayers and appraisers
24:15 No rules, tight deadlines
25:30 Voting vs. economic interest: The founder problem
28:15 What happens to California's finances?
29:00 The $100 billion revenue estimate vs. reality
31:40 Litigation and the refund risk
33:55 Wrap-up

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Ten years ago, then-Speaker Paul Ryan and Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady released the “Better Way” Tax Plan, the blueprint that would eventually become the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017—the largest overhaul of the US tax code in over 30 years.

With the national debt climbing, Social Security heading toward insolvency, and tariffs reshaping the economy, the next round of reforms will demand bold ideas and a serious look at the trade-offs they carry.

In this special anniversary episode of The Deduction, hosts Erica York and Kyle Hulehan sit down with the plan’s original architects to talk through how it came together, the bold bets they made (and the ones that didn’t pan out, like the border adjustment tax), what a decade of hindsight reveals about its economic impact, and where tax reform goes from here.

GUESTS:

• Paul Ryan—Former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives; former Chairman, House Ways and Means Committee
• Kevin Brady—Former Chairman, House Ways and Means Committee

HOSTS:

• Erica York & Kyle Hulehan, Tax Foundation

TIMESTAMPS:

0:00 – Cold Open: The Walgreens Story
0:35 – Welcome to The Deduction
1:19 – How the Better Way Tax Plan Began
3:12 – Becoming Speaker and Ways & Means Chair
4:57 – Why They Decided to "Go Bold"
6:18 – The Vision: Ending Corporate Inversions
7:33 – Destination-Based Cash Flow Tax & Border Adjustment
9:58 – Designing a Tax Code Built for Growth
10:53 – The 2019 Results: Wages, Poverty & Inequality
14:01 – Why Border Adjustment Didn't Survive Politically
19:37 – The Corporate Rate as the "Crown Jewel"
22:14 – Stopping the Inversion Wave
23:36 – What's the Next Motivator for Tax Reform?
25:22 – Kevin's Wishlist: What They'd Still Change
27:21 – House vs. Senate: What Got Left on the Table
28:57 – Revenue Neutrality and the National Debt
30:38 – Winning Over Industry: Building Trust
32:10 – The Case for Entitlement Reform
34:07 – Fixing a Broken Budget Process
38:23 – Final Thoughts: Why Think Tanks Matter
39:51 – The Tax Foundation's Role Then and Now

Subscribe to The Deduction for more conversations on tax policy and economics.
Learn more at TaxFoundation.org

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Most Americans don't understand how the tax code works, and it's costing them. In this episode of The Deduction, host Kyle Hulehan sits down with Zoe Callaway, VP of Education at Tax Foundation, to talk about tax and financial literacy in America. They dig into the results of Tax Foundation's national survey on tax literacy, the most stubborn misconceptions people have about taxes (including one that nearly made a teacher turn down her own promotion), and what's happening in high school classrooms across the country. They also connect everyday tax confusion to bigger policy questions, from tariffs to tax refunds.

📧 Questions? Email us at [email protected]
🐦 DMs: @DeductionPod on Twitter
💬 Drop a comment below!

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Should you have to file a tax return in a state where you babysat for one hour? In 22 states, the answer is technically yes.

In this episode of The Deduction, host Kyle Hulehan and co-host Erica York sit down with Katherine Loughead, Director of State Tax Projects at the Tax Foundation, to break down the tangled mess of state nonresident income tax laws — and why they're a growing problem in the remote work era.

Katherine walks us through how credits for taxes paid to other states are supposed to prevent double taxation, why "convenience rules" in 8 states can saddle remote workers with two full tax bills, how a wild patchwork of filing thresholds creates confusion for workers and employers alike, and what reforms states should adopt to simplify the system.

📄 READ THE FULL PAPER:
"Nonresident Income Tax Filing and Withholding Laws by State, 2026"
https://taxfoundation.org/data/all/state/nonresident-income-tax-filing/

📄 RELATED: "State Individual Income Taxes on Nonresidents: Remote Work & Hybrid Work"
https://taxfoundation.org/research/all/state/state-income-taxes-nonresidents/

📄 "How Burdensome Are Your State's Nonresident Income Tax Filing Laws?" (Interactive Map)
https://taxfoundation.org/data/all/state/nonresident-income-tax-filing-laws/

📄 Mobile Workforce State Income Tax Simplification Act
https://taxfoundation.org/blog/complicated-state-taxes-business-travelers/

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HOSTS & GUEST:

Kyle Hulehan — Host, Senior Marketing Associate & Creative Producer
Tax Foundation: https://taxfoundation.org/about-us/staff/kyle-hulehan

Erica York — Co-Host, Vice President of Federal Tax Policy
Tax Foundation: https://taxfoundation.org/about-us/staff/erica-york
Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/ericadyork
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/erica-york-a68ab474
Substack: https://ericadyork.substack.com

Katherine Loughead — Guest, Director of State Tax Projects
Tax Foundation: https://taxfoundation.org/about-us/staff/katherine-loughead
Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/KELoughead
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/katherine-e-loughead-6020a568

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FOLLOW THE DEDUCTION:
Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/deductionpod

FOLLOW TAX FOUNDATION:
Website: https://taxfoundation.org
Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/TaxFoundation

📬 Have a question? Email us at [email protected] or DM @DeductionPod on Twitter.

#taxes #remotework #statetaxes #taxfiling #incometax #taxreform #taxfoundation #deduction #podcast #workfromhome

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On April 2, 2025, President Trump announced sweeping "reciprocal" tariffs on Liberation Day, promising an investment boom, massive revenue, debt reduction, and lower prices. One year later, Kyle Hulehan and Erica York dig into the data to see how those promises held up.

0:00 - Liberation Day speech recap
2:00 - Were the tariffs actually "reciprocal"?
5:30 - The real math behind the tariff formula
10:00 - Market reactions and policy chaos
14:00 - The promised investment boom that never arrived
17:30 - Tariff revenue vs. projections and the national debt
22:00 - Who actually paid the tariffs?
25:30 - Business uncertainty and real-world impacts
29:30 - Could any version of these tariffs have worked?
36:00 - The five broken promises of Liberation Day
37:00 - What comes next after the Supreme Court ruling

Resources:
Tax Foundation Tariff Tracker: https://taxfoundation.org/research/all/federal/trump-tariffs-trade-war/
Tax Foundation Trade & Tariff Research: https://taxfoundation.org/research/all/federal/topics/trade/
Subscribe to the Tax Foundation: https://taxfoundation.org/subscribe/

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AI is everywhere, and now it's in the tax policy debate. In this episode of The Deduction, hosts Kyle Hulehan and Erica York sit down with Alex Muresianu, Senior Policy Analyst at the Tax Foundation. Together they examine what current labor market data actually shows, why proposals from Senators Sanders and Kelly risk backfiring, and what smarter reforms like worker retraining deductions and consumption-based taxation would strengthen the tax code no matter how the AI story unfolds.

Connect with the Guests

Kyle Hulehan — Host, Senior Marketing Associate and Creative Producer Tax Foundation: taxfoundation.org/about-us/staff/kyle-hulehan 

Erica York — Co-Host, Vice President of Federal Tax Policy Tax Foundation: taxfoundation.org/about-us/staff/erica-york Twitter/X: @ericadyork LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/erica-york-a68ab474 Substack: ericadyork.substack.com

Alex Muresianu — Senior Policy Analyst, Federal Tax Policy Tax Foundation: taxfoundation.org/about-us/staff/alex-muresianu Twitter/X: @ahardtospell LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/alex-muresianu-2b1802181

Related Reading

• "When Taxing AI, Don't Reinvent the Wheel" — Alex Muresianu, Tax Foundation
• The Deduction Podcast
• Questions? Email: [email protected] | Twitter: @DeductionPod

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Last Friday, the Supreme Court struck down President Trump’s IEEPA tariffs in a landmark 6-3 decision. In this episode of The Deduction, hosts Kyle Hulehan and Erica York break down what the ruling actually means, from how collections could be refunded to how the administration is already scrambling to put new tariffs in place. Erica walks through why businesses may face even more uncertainty in the near term as a messy patchwork of replacement tariffs takes shape.

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TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 – Weekend tariff chaos and IEEPA "pdu"
2:00 – What the Supreme Court decided on IEEPA tariffs
4:36 – Which tariffs were struck down (Liberation Day, fentanyl, and more)
5:42 – Will importers get refunds on $160 billion in unlawful collections?
7:54 – Does the ruling improve the economic outlook?
9:00 – What tariff authority does the president still have?
9:42 – Updated Tax Foundation tariff model numbers
12:00 – Section 122 explained: 150-day tariffs and legal questions
14:00 – Section 232, Section 301, and the coming patchwork of tariffs
15:42 – The compliance and administrative waste of tariff policy
17:00 – Can Congress step in and reclaim tariff authority?

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RESOURCES:
Tax Foundation Tariff Tracker: https://taxfoundation.org/research/all/federal/trump-tariffs-trade-war/
Tax Foundation IEEPA Tariff Analysis: https://taxfoundation.org/tags/ieepa/

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CONTACT:
Email: [email protected]
Twitter/X: @DeductionPod
Twitter/X: @EricaDYork 
Drop a comment below with your tax questions.

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ABOUT:
The Deduction is a podcast by the Tax Foundation, the world's leading independent tax policy nonprofit. The Tax Foundation has been providing trusted, nonpartisan tax research and analysis since 1937.

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The One Big Beautiful Bill Act capped off a hectic year for tax policy. It extended key Tax Cuts and Jobs Act provisions, reshaped the outlook for 2026, and raised fresh questions about the deficit. 

In this episode, Kyle Hulehan and Erica York are joined by Daniel Bunn, President and CEO, and Jared Walczak, Vice President of State Projects, to break down what the law did, walk through our projections, and zoom out to other defining fights of 2025: Trump's "Liberation Day" tariffs, the Supreme Court challenge over presidential tariff power, and the growing wave of property tax revolts across the states. 

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In this episode of The Deduction podcast, host Kyle Hulehan and co-host Erica York are joined by Alex Durante, Senior Economist at the Tax Foundation, to discuss the Supreme Court's upcoming decision on whether the president can impose $2.2 trillion in tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). 

The conversation covers the origins and implications of these tariffs, their economic impact on consumers and businesses, and the potential outcomes of the court ruling. They also explore the broader theme of presidential authority in trade regulation and the possible legislative responses. Stay tuned for an insightful breakdown of the tariff landscape and its future implications.  

00:00 Introduction and Bananas 

00:36 Welcome to The Deduction Podcast 

01:15 Tariffs and Presidential Authority 

04:15 Impact of Tariffs on Consumers and Businesses 

06:58 Bananas as a Case Study 

08:42 Personal Stories of Tariff Impact 

10:43 Legal Battle Over Tariffs 

14:25 Future of Tariff Policies 

20:53 Congress vs. Presidential Power 

23:32 Conclusion and Listener Engagement 

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