IRET has ceased operations. For more information about current tax and fiscal policy, it is recommended that viewers visit the Tax Foundation's website. The Tax Foundation is one of the nation's oldest and most respected tax-policy organizations.

This website is being left in place for easy access to prior IRET work.

IRET was a non profit, non partisan 501(c)(3) economic research institute located in Washington, DC. IRET was dedicated to the belief that constructive, free market economic policies are essential for the nation's economic progress, and that the private sector is the principal engine of economic growth. Constructive public policies, in IRET's view, must be more than just politically attractive; they must make economic sense as well.

IRET's goals were to foster a wider understanding of basic economics among public policy officials, the media and the general public, and to assist in the formulation of public economic policies that will contribute to economic growth, efficiency, and competitiveness. Toward that end, IRET analyzed the effects of government tax, budget, monetary and regulatory policies, and proposals for incremental and fundamental reforms. It judged those policies according to their effects on economic incentives for individuals and businesses, on resource allocation, on the efficient functioning of the market economy, and on personal freedom and property rights. IRET disseminated its materials to Congress, the Executive branch, the media, and the general public.