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1 Zoe Callaway, et al., National Tax Literacy Poll: Assessing Taxpayer Knowledge and Perceptions of the US Tax System 1 (2024)

handle is hein.taxfoundation/nltxlypl0001 and id is 1 raw text is: *tTAX FOUNDATION National Tax Literacy Poll: Assessing Taxpayer Knowledge and Perceptions of the US Tax System Zoe Callaway Director of Education William McBride Vice President of Federal Tax Policy & Stephen J. Entin Fellow in Economics Yihan Chen Nicolo Pastrone December 2024 Executive Summary Taxes and their broader impact are generally overlooked in American education. Taxes influence earnings, budgets, voting, and decisions on where to live, but do American taxpayers understand the US tax system? In 2024, the Tax Foundation's educational program, TaxEDU, and Center for Federal Tax Policy conducted a poll with Public Policy Polling. (PPP) to gauge Americans' knowledge of basic tax concepts and opinions of the current tax code. The results indicate that most Americans are confused by and dissatisfied with the federal tax code. Our objective in this report is to delve further into the survey results to assess how individuals from vari- ous demographic backgrounds perceive the US tax system and understand key tax-related concepts. Ad- ditionally, we explore how different levels of tax knowledge influence views of the tax system and whether an understanding of one aspect of tax literacy correlates with comprehension of related tax perspectives. This analysis allows us to identify the key demographic and knowledge-based factors that primarily influ- ence tax perception and literacy, providing deeper insights into how various populations engage with the US tax system. The National Tax Literacy Poll highlights the need for and importance of tax education for everyone, as most Americans of all ages, incomes, education levels, and political affiliations misunderstand taxes and are dissatisfied with the tax code. As the US continues to focus on financial literacy in education, these results can guide educators' efforts. The Tax Foundation is the world's leading nonpartisan tax policy 501 (c)(3) nonprofit. For over 80 years, our mission has remained the same: to improve lives through tax policies that lead to greater economic growth and opportunity. TAX FOUNDATION 1325 G STREET, NW, SUITE 950, WASHINGTON, DC 20005 202-464 62001 laxfoundation.org