Benefit incidence studies typically find spending on health, education and transfer payments to be strongly progressive, while finding mixed results on tax progressivity in different countries.
While there is consensus that overall federal taxation is progressive, there is dispute over whether progressivity has increased or decreased in recent decades, and by how much.
This should involve increasing its progressivity so upper income earners pay more and increasing subsidies and refundable credits for modest and low income earners.
Because of the progressivity of the tax and transfer system, addressing the deficit through an increase in taxes rather than constraining spending will reduce inequality.
The budget of 1914 brought greater progressivity into the taxation system by increasing levels of direct taxation on the wealthy while also investing more money in social services.