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Tax levels, fairness of taxes, who should pay more, and specific tax policies.
| Question | Source | Years | Waves |
|---|---|---|---|
| Own federal income tax too high or low Do you consider the amount of federal income tax which you have to pay as too high, about right, or too low? | GSS | 1976–2024 | 28 |
| Claimed Child Tax Credit on 2021 tax return On your 2021 Federal tax return, did you or someone in your household claim the "Child Tax Credit," that is the expanded credit as part of the Federal Government's 2021 American Rescue Plan? This credit would have been claimed on line 28 of your Form 1040. | Household Pulse | 2022 | 6 |
| Received a refund from 2021 tax return In the last 4 weeks, did you receive a refund from your 2021 tax return? | Household Pulse | 2022 | 6 |
| Taxes on high-income people too high or low A. First, for those with high incomes, are taxes . . . | GSS | 1987–2021 | 6 |
| Share of income the rich should pay in taxes Do you think that people with high incomes should pay a larger share of their income in taxes than those with low incomes, the same share, or a smaller share . . . | GSS | 1987–2021 | 4 |
| Taxes on low-income people too high or low C. Lastly, for those with low incomes, are taxes . . . | GSS | 1987–2016 | 4 |
| Taxes on middle-income people too high or low B. Next, for those with middle incomes, are taxes . . . | GSS | 1987–2016 | 4 |
| Economists' agreement on effects of cutting income taxes Please look at Card B11. On a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 means "Near complete agreement" and 5 means "No agreement at all", to what extent Do economists agree on the effects of reducing federal income taxes? | GSS | 2006–2010 | 2 |
| Influence economists should have on income tax cuts A. Economists. (Would you say a great deal of influence, a fair amount, a little influence, or none at all?) | GSS | 2006–2010 | 2 |
| Elected officials' influence on cutting federal income taxes C. Elected officials. (Would you say a great deal of influence, a fair amount, a little influence, or none at all?) | GSS | 2006–2010 | 2 |
| Business leaders' influence on federal income tax cuts B. Business leaders. (Would you say a great deal of influence, a fair amount, a little influence, or none at all?) | GSS | 2006–2010 | 2 |
| Elected officials' understanding of income tax cuts C. Elected Officials | GSS | 2006–2010 | 2 |
| Economists' understanding of income tax cuts A. Economists | GSS | 2006–2010 | 2 |
| Business leaders' understanding of income tax cuts B. Business leaders | GSS | 2006–2010 | 2 |
| Economists' motives on income tax policy A. Economists | GSS | 2006–2010 | 2 |
| Business leaders and federal income tax policy motives B. Business leaders | GSS | 2006–2010 | 2 |
| Wrongness of cheating on taxes A. A taxpayer does not report all of his income in order to pay less income taxes. | GSS | 1991–1998 | 2 |
| Share of income tax high earners should pay Some people think those with high incomes should pay a larger proportion (percentage) of their earnings in taxes than those who earn low incomes. Other people think that those with high incomes and those with low incomes should pay the same proportion (percentage) of their earnings in taxes. Do you think those with high incomes should pay a much larger proportion, pay a larger proportion, pay the same proportion as those who earn low incomes, pay a smaller proportion. pay a much smaller proportion? | GSS | 1985–1990 | 2 |
| Raise the corporate income tax rate to 28 percent Do you support or oppose each of the following proposals? [Raise the corporate income tax rate from 21 percent to 28 percent] | CES | 2024 | 1 |
| Raise top tax rate to 35 percent on income over $400,000 Do you support or oppose each of the following proposals? [Allow tax rates on those earning $400,000 or more a year to rise to 35 percent] | CES | 2024 | 1 |
| Extend the 2017 tax cuts Do you support or oppose each of the following proposals? [Extend the tax cuts enacted in 2017, which reduced individual and corporate income tax rates and limited deductions on mortgage interest and state and local taxes] | CES | 2024 | 1 |
| Raise sales tax versus raise income tax | CES | 2022 | 1 |
| Tax increases versus spending cuts for the budget | CES | 2022 | 1 |
| Received monthly Child Tax Credit payments Have you received any monthly Child Tax Credit payments this year? | Fed SHED | 2021 | 1 |
| Tax increases versus spending cuts to balance budget | CES | 2020 | 1 |
| Raise sales tax versus raise income tax | CES | 2020 | 1 |
| Cut income tax rate for households over $500,000 more than $500,000 by 3 percent (from 40%to 37%). Congress considered many changes in tax law over the past two years. Do you support or oppose each of the following? [Reduce the income tax rate for households earning more than $500,000 by] | CES | 2018 | 1 |
| Eliminating all state income taxes If your state put the following questions for a vote on the ballot, would you vote FOR or AGAINST? [Eliminate and prohibit all income taxes in your state.] | CES | 2018 | 1 |
| State tax increase on incomes over $1 million If your state put the following questions for a vote on the ballot, would you vote FOR or AGAINST? [Increase taxes on incomes that exceed $1 million by 4 percent to pay for schools and roads] | CES | 2018 | 1 |
| Support or oppose a combined tax bill Would you support or oppose a tax bill that does all of the following? Cuts the Corporate Income Tax rate from 39 percent to 21 percent.Reduces the mortgage interest deduction from $1 million to $500,000.Caps the amount of state and local tax that can be deducted to $10,000 (previously there was no limit).Increases the standard deduction from $12,000 to $25,000.Cuts income tax rates for all income groups by 3 percent. | CES | 2018 | 1 |
| Cutting the corporate income tax rate to 21 percent Congress considered many changes in tax law over the past two years. Do you support or oppose each of the following? [Cut the Corporate Income Tax rate from 39 percent to 21 percent.] | CES | 2018 | 1 |
| State sales tax increase for schools and roads If your state put the following questions for a vote on the ballot, would you vote FOR or AGAINST? [Increase the sales tax by one percent to pay for schools and roads.] | CES | 2018 | 1 |
| Raising the federal standard deduction to $25,000 Congress considered many changes in tax law over the past two years. Do you support or oppose each of the following? [Increase the standard deduction on federal income taxes from $12,000 to to $25,000] | CES | 2018 | 1 |
| Cut income tax rate for households under $500,000 than $500,000 by 3% Congress considered many changes in tax law over the past two years. Do you support or oppose each of the following? [Reduce the income tax rate for households earning less than $500,000 by] | CES | 2018 | 1 |
| Capping the state and local tax deduction at $10,000 Congress considered many changes in tax law over the past two years. Do you support or oppose each of the following? [Limit the amount of state and local taxes that can be deducted to $10,000 (previously there was no limit).] | CES | 2018 | 1 |
| Reducing the mortgage interest deduction Congress considered many changes in tax law over the past two years. Do you support or oppose each of the following? [Reduce the mortgage interest deduction. Allow people to deduct the interest on no more than $500,000 of mortgage debt. The previous limit was $1 million.] | CES | 2018 | 1 |
| Tax authorities make sure people pay taxes Make sure people pay their taxes? Would you say... | GSS | 2016 | 1 |
| Tax authorities treat everyone equally under the law Treat everyone in accordance with the law, regardless of their contacts or position in society? (Would you say...) | GSS | 2016 | 1 |
| Cut taxes or spend more on social programs If the government had a choice between reducing taxes or spending more on social programs like health care, social security, and unemployment benefits, which do you think it should do? (We mean all taxes together, including social security, income tax, sales tax, and all the rest.) PLEASE CHECK ONE BOX ONLY. | GSS | 1996 | 1 |
| Tax burden discourages couples from having children I. The burden of taxes discourages couples from having as many children as they would like. | GSS | 1990 | 1 |
| Amount of tax on business and industry Do you consider the amount of tax that business and industry have to pay is too high or too low? | GSS | 1985 | 1 |
| Fairness of household federal income tax amount Do you consider the amount of federal income tax that your household has to pay is . . . | GSS | 1985 | 1 |