In the 2026 Utah Legislative General Session alone, the Utah Legislature passed more than 20 bills that impacted tax policy.
This included reducing the income tax rate, expanding eligibility for the child tax credit and raising taxes on nicotine products.
These policies are constantly being modified at both the state and federal levels, which is why the BYU Tax Policy Association club meets monthly to discuss how these policies specifically impact everyone.
The club president, Sean McDougal, is getting his master’s degree in accounting. Despite already knowing a lot about taxes from his classes, he said he learned a lot more about the intersection between taxes and government from the club meetings, which they often don’t have time to go over in class.
“We're able to get into more of the why behind what we do in our classes,” McDougal said.
Although the meetings are most applicable to students in the business school, all students are welcome to attend.
Member Sydney Clove said it is always helpful to learn about the why behind paying taxes and how someone can pay less.
“Taxes affect everyone,” Clove said. “Everyone has to pay taxes, so you can never be too informed about something that affects you.”
On March 12, they heard from professor Troy Lewis about how tax policy drives behavior.
“It really does come down to the same thing,” Lewis said. “Prioritization.”
He said behavioral change occurs from these policies, depending on how advantageous it is to the taxpayer.
Lewis taught that Congress uses tax policy to do four things:
- Tax policy can encourage behavior, such as retirement savings incentives that encourage taxpayers to save up now, rather than possibly having to rely on public programs in the future.
- Tax policy can discourage behavior, such as nicotine taxes that discourage taxpayers from using harmful products.
- Tax policy can shift the timing of certain decisions, such as the State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction cap, which caused many who may have already been considering moving to a lower-tax state to do so sooner.
- Tax policy can redirect economic activity, such as housing tax credits that encourage builders to build more subsidized housing for low-income families.
This is just one of many topics the association has covered, along with revenue scoring, national tax and financial planning. They have also heard from speakers like Utah State Tax Commission Chair John Valentine and Utah Chief Legislative Fiscal Analyst Jonathan Ball.
The club meets monthly in the Tanner Building on Thursdays at 11 a.m., and food is provided for those who attend.
To officially join the club, click this link, and stay updated on any future meetings by joining the newsletter or following the Instagram page @byutaxpolicy.