Whether the nation would be better served by an income tax or by a consumption tax has been debated by tax experts for decades. In practice, tax systems everywhere are mixed or ""hybrid"" systems. And while legislators have reasons for enacting such systems, the mix results in inequities, inefficiencies, and abuse.For Uneasy Compromise, Brookings brought together some of the nation's most knowledgeable tax experts and analysts to address the question: How should lawmakers grapple with the problems that arise from the side-by-side existence of principles of consumption taxation with principles of income taxation? Rather than propose rules for an ideal system that will never exist, this book addresses the problems created by a hybrid system. In so doing, it offers policymakers a comprehensive and sophisticated analysis of our current tax system and the tools for evaluating proposed refinements.

This book presents a selection of essays on public finance, which is concerned with taxation, income maintenance, and social security, with emphasis on the analysis of policy alternatives to improve tax and transfer systems. It is useful for those who are interested in learning tax policy issues.

That women have entered the work force in large numbers is a well-known economic development, but many questions remain about the effects of this dramatic shift. Have women been truly integrated into the labor market? How have they fared in the competition for fair wages and professional jobs? What has happened to the American family and its standard of living?

This book presents a selection of essays on public finance, which is concerned with taxation, income maintenance, and social security, with emphasis on the analysis of policy alternatives to improve tax and transfer systems. It is useful for those who are interested in learning tax policy issues.

"One of the major architects of comprehensive tax reform has revised his widely acclaimed book on tax policy to reflect the changes brought about by the Tax Reform Act of 1986 and all other major changes in tax laws since 1983. Joseph A. Pechman's Federal Tax Policy is a nontechnical book for general readers and students interested in taxation as an instrument of public policy. It emphasizes such current issues as a comprehensive income taxation, inflation adjustments in income taxation, graduated income taxes versus expenditure taxes, the effects of taxation on economic incentives, and fiscal relations between the federal and state and local governments. Pechman presents and evaluates contrasting views on most forms of taxation-personal and corporate income, general and selective consumption, payroll, estate and gift, property, and state and local--and offers a perceptive analysis of the process of tax legislation and the role of taxation in the fiscal policy. He also provides a valuable series of statistical table on tax developments and an extensive bibliography on tax theory and practice. "