The TPC published a 32-page “An Analysis of Donald Trump’s Revised Tax Plan” in October 2016 (http://tpc.io/2hHPePu). Very briefly, the Trump plan would reduce individual and corporate tax rates, increase the standard deduction, and add a new deduction for child and dependent care. Personal exemptions and head-of-household status would be eliminated, along with the alternative minimum tax and estate and gift taxes. Flow-through income from conduit entities could be taxed at 15% by owner election.

The House GOP plan was also scrutinized in a 36-page September 2016 report (http://tpc.io/2hcEGZO). In summary, the GOP plan would reduce individual and corporate tax rates more conservatively than the Trump plan, allow individuals to deduct 50% of capital gains and dividends, and increase the standard deduction. The GOP plan would eliminate many itemized deductions, personal exemptions, the alternative minimum tax, Affordable Care Act (ACA) taxes, and estate and gift taxes. The corporate income tax would be replaced by a cash flow consumption tax for all businesses, and international corporate taxes would move to a destination-based system.

One of the updated areas of the new TPC website is the Interactive Tools section (http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/interactive-tools). The 2016 Election Calculator (http://tpc-election-calculator.urban.org/) allows users to see the effect of proposed tax policy changes on sample taxpayers. After selecting a filing status and income level, taxpayers can see calculations of adjusted gross income, taxable income, tax liability, and additional taxes and credits. Users can also create their own scenario by selecting marital status, number of dependents, and keying in income and deduction amounts.

For tax advisors still coping with 2016 tax law, there are interactive tools for an individual ACA penalty calculator and a marriage bonus and penalty calculator. The ACA calculator can estimate the shared responsibility payment by filing status, number of dependents, and income for 2014 through 2016 (http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/interactive-tools/aca-tax-calculator). The marriage calculator compares the tax results for a married couple versus two singles (http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/interactive-tools/marriage-bonus-and-penalty-tax-calculator).

Although many might avoid the TPC’s statistics section, some of the international data tables may be useful to CPAs advising clients on offshore matters (http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/statistics/international). The OECD Taxation of Corporate Income table details the corporate tax rates published for 2014 (http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/statistics/oecd-taxation-corporate-income), and the OECD Taxation of Wage Income spreadsheet reports the top marginal personal income tax rates as of 2013 (http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/statistics/oecd-taxation-wage-income-2000-2013). The statistical tables can be downloaded as PDF or Excel documents.

Finally, the TaxVox Blog presents almost daily articles on current tax policy topics written by TPC researchers and staff, and includes links to research reports and other related resources (http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/taxvox). “Navigating the Confusing Language of International Tax Reform” (Eric Toder, Dec. 14, 2016) explains the terms territorial tax, worldwide tax, and destination-based tax, as well as current U.S. policy. New taxes on sugary drinks have recently been passed in several localities, and “Building a Better Soda Tax” (Donald Marron, Dec. 12, 2016) suggests that the tax design is weak and should focus on sugar content rather than drink volume, as that would be a more direct connection to the stated purpose of discouraging consumption.