Home›Open Questions›Does cutting tax rates below their observed real-world range actually raise government revenue, as the Laffer Curve implies is possible?Open QuestionsDoes cutting tax rates below their observed real-world range actually raise government revenue, as the Laffer Curve implies is possible?Citation FormatsGeneral ReferenceGeneral Reference Citation TextEconomics Atlas. "Does cutting tax rates below their observed real-world range actually raise government revenue, as the Laffer Curve implies is possible?." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://economics.interactiveatlas.org/open-questions-index/laffer-curve-does-cutting-taxes-raise-revenue.Copy General ReferenceAPA StyleAPA Style Citation TextEconomics Atlas. (n.d.). Does cutting tax rates below their observed real-world range actually raise government revenue, as the Laffer Curve implies is possible?. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://economics.interactiveatlas.org/open-questions-index/laffer-curve-does-cutting-taxes-raise-revenueCopy APA StyleBibTeXBibTeX Citation Text@misc{economicsatlas-does-cutting-tax-rates-below-their-obser, author = {Economics Atlas}, title = {Does cutting tax rates below their observed real-world range actually raise government revenue, as the Laffer Curve implies is possible?}, year = {2026}, url = {https://economics.interactiveatlas.org/open-questions-index/laffer-curve-does-cutting-taxes-raise-revenue}, note = {Accessed August 30, 2026} }Copy BibTeXOpen QuestionCross-Tradition ConnectionsSourcesComments (0)Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)Open QuestionThe Laffer Curve's logic (zero revenue at 0% and 100% tax rates, so some intermediate rate maximizes revenue) is not itself disputed, but whether actual, real-world tax rates sit on the curve's revenue-losing side, so that a cut would pay for itself, is a live empirical dispute between supply-side economists and the mainstream consensus. A 2012 University of Chicago IGM Forum survey of leading economists found essentially no support among them for the claim that cutting federal income tax rates would raise revenue within five years.What would resolve this A settled empirical estimate of where actual tax rates sit relative to the revenue-maximizing point, which depends on contested behavioral-response (elasticity) estimates that differ sharply between supply-side and mainstream public finance economists.OpenPublic finance and empirical tax policy economicsWikipediaCross-Tradition ConnectionsQuestion OnLaffer Curve, Concepts Well-attested Source Wikipediatier 2SourcesWikipediatier 2Wikimedia FoundationArthur Laffer, Criticism and ControversyView the SourceComments (0)No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.Sign in to join the discussion.Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.View At A Past YearThe atlas records no dated fact of its own for this entry, so there is no other year to choose.Show This Year