illustration demonstrating the effects of taxes on families.

Taxes touch nearly every aspect of people’s lives, yet many struggle to understand how the tax system works.

This guide offers four steps analysts can take to engage broader audiences, acknowledge historical and political contexts, and demonstrate the relevance of tax policy decisions to people’s daily lives and their long-term well-being. The goal is to empower people and communities to understand, engage with, and help achieve a better tax system.

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Timely data on Americans’ finances and the cost of basic needs by state and congressional district.

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In this brief, we use data from the Urban Institute’s Well-Being and Basic Needs Survey (WBNS) to estimate the share of adults experiencing household food insecurity in 2025.
The Evolving Relationship Between Nonprofits and Government: Past, Present, and Future
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Many small business owners need to borrow capital to operate, but how an entrepreneur manages debt can lead to significant differences in business outcomes and trajectory.
Spotlight on Artificial Intelligence
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Photo of two young professionals looking at lines of code on two monitors.

“It felt like research in the beginning, but it felt like family at the end, because we all came together.” — Stan Hamilton, High School Football Coach at Benning Terrace

Read: Making Their Voices Heard: Improving Research through Community Collaboration.

“When investing in communities, it’s important to make sure that in that funding, there are opportunities for the people who are already invested in their communities to be a part of it.” — Courtney Gibbs, Program Director, Sasha Bruce Youthwork

Read: Why Investing in Trusted Community-Based Organizations Is Crucial to Sustainability.

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