Domestic Policy terms
Tax Return
A form on which a taxpayer makes an annual statement of income and personal circumstances, used by the tax authorities to assess liability for tax.
Entitlement programs
A government program that guarantees certain benefits to a particular group or segment of the population.
Revenue
A state's annual income from which public expenses are met.
Gift Tax
A tax on the transfer of property by one individual to another while receiving nothing, or less than full value in return.
Payroll Taxes
A tax that an employer withholds and pays on behalf of his employees
Domestic Policy
Administrative decisions that are directly related to all issues and activity within a nation's borders.
Capitalism
An economic and political system in which a country's trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state.
Communism
An economic and political system in which all property is owned by the state.
Deficit
An excess of expenditure over income
Surplus
An excess of income over expenditures
Social Security
Benefits are paid out monthly to retired workers and their spouses who have, during their working years, paid into the social security system.
Controllable Spending
Congress and the president decide how much to spend.
Medicare
Federal health insurance program for people who are 65 or older.
Uncontrollable Spending
Mandatory spending
Flat Tax
System that applies the same tax rate to every taxpayer regardless of income bracket
Estate Tax
Tax collected when a person dies.
Corporate Income Tax
Tax levied by a government on the profits of a company.
Excise Tax
Tax on certain product, sometimes called a hidden tax
Tariff
Tax on imported goods.
Property tax
Tax on the land you own
Income Tax
Tax paid on money earned from working.
Regressive tax
Tax rate decreases as the taxable rate increases.
Progressive Tax
Tax rate increases as the taxable amount increases.
Expenditures
The action of spending funds
Office of management and Budget
The buisness division of the Executive Office of the president of the United States that administers the United States federal budget and oversees the performance of federal agencies.
Federal Reserve Bank
The central bank of the United States and the most powerful financial institution in the world. The Federal Reserve Bank was founded by the U.S. congress in 1913 to provide the nation with a safe, flexible and stable monetary and financial system.
Interest
The charge for the privilege of borrowing money, typically expressed as annual percentage rate.
Public Debt
The money owed by a government