Tax Foundation

The Tax Foundation is the oldest non-profit tax think tank in the country, founded in 1937. Their stated mission is "to educate taxpayers about state and federal tax burdens," and supports simplicity, neutrality, transparency and a pro-growth approach to the tax code.

It was founded at the University Club in New York. Founding members included:

• Alfred P. Sloan, General Motors Corporation, chairman
• Donaldson Brown, General Motors Corporation financial vice president
• William S. Farish, Standard Oil Company, President
• Lewis H. Brown, President of the Johns-Manville Corporation

Its first chairman was Lewis H. Brown.

The Tax Foundation publishes studies on state on federal tax burdens, costs of tax compliance, and others like the impact of cigarette taxes on smuggling. The major public campaign of the Tax Foundation is its annual Tax Freedom Day, which calculates the total state and federal tax burden of the nation as a percentage of national income, and converts that into the portion of the year taxpayers must "work to pay taxes".

Funding

The Tax Foundation is funded partially by private donations from members, but is primarily funded by corporate donations, with limited foundation funding from the Koch Foundation, Earhart Foundation, etc.

Personnel

• Scott A. Hodge, executive director
• William Ahern, Director of Communications
• Julie Burden, Director of Development

References

• Scott A. Hodge, Celebrating Our 65th Year, Tax Features (Tax Foundation newsletter), September 2002

http://www.taxfoundation.org