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