The Backward Art of Tax Cutting

This policy note examines the case for large tax cuts, focusing on the issues surrounding the purpose and overall size of the needed cut. Although Congress has passed a significant package of tax relief, many have worried that the budget surplus on which it was based will never appear. Thus, some have advocated “triggers” to reduce the size of the tax cuts should tax revenues begin to decline. This note argues that such a proposal represents “backward thinking.”