Bill Bradley on Revenue Neutrality and Tax Reform

The transcript discusses the complexities of tax reform, focusing on eliminating loopholes, corporate interest deductions, and the importance of revenue and distributional neutrality. It highlights the challenges of making tax policy decisions without full information, such as the President's tax returns, and the impact of tax cuts on different income groups. The conversation also reflects on past tax reforms, emphasizing the need to balance tax cuts with maintaining revenue neutrality and addressing the tax burden on various income brackets.

What is the main challenge in deciding whether to eliminate corporate interest deductions?

• It is unrelated to tax reform.

• It only affects small businesses.

• It requires understanding the overall tax reform impact.

• It is a straightforward decision.

What were the two operational principles discussed in the context of tax reform?

• Tax increase and deficit reduction

• Interest deduction and equity

• Corporate tax and personal tax

• Revenue neutrality and distributional neutrality

Why is distributional neutrality important in tax reform?

• To maintain the current tax burden distribution

• To ensure tax cuts only benefit the wealthy

• To eliminate all taxes

• To increase the deficit

How has the tax burden distribution changed since 1986?

• The middle class pays the least taxes.

• The tax rates have remained the same.

• The upper 10% pays a larger share of total taxes.

• The lower income group pays more taxes now.

What was the effect of eliminating loopholes in 1986?

• It increased the tax rate for everyone.

• It allowed the top 5% to pay a higher percentage of total tax revenue.

• It decreased the overall tax revenue.

• It had no effect on tax distribution.