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Higher levels of government should provide adequate resources when mandating functions to lower levels of government.

Services should be implemented and operated by the level of government that can most appropriately and efficiently deliver them.

Efforts to reform entitlement spending should recognize the following factors:

Deficit-reduction efforts should avoid cuts in programs that serve low- and moderate-income populations.

The federal government must strive for long-term fiscal balance.

Any further efforts to address marriage penalties should be targeted to two-earner couples and structured to avoid increasing marriage bonuses.

Passing responsibilities down to lower levels of government should be undertaken primarily to place services closer to the people being served and to maximize administrative

Tax reform should focus on raising sufficient revenue. It should make the tax system more equitable and efficient.

Reforms should

Reforming business taxes, such as the corporate tax or a tax on the financial industry, should be considered in any effort to raise additional revenue.

Policymakers should not tax the actuarial value of Medicare or the value of other in-kind benefits (see also