response to this discussion The three largest deductions$$state and local taxes, home mortgage interest, and charitable contributions$$helps$.$ State and local taxes: Nearly all itemizers deduct state and local taxes, up to $99$ percent both pre$-$TCJA and post$-$TCJA. A $2004$ law that allowed taxpayers to deduct state and local sales taxes in lieu of income taxes slightly increased the number of itemizers taking this deduction. Home mortgage interest: Before $2006,$ between $81$ and $83$ percent of itemizers deducted mortgage interest. But that share steadily dropped to a low of $73$ percent in $2016,$ consistent with the decline in homeownership following the housing bubble collapse and falling mortgage interest rates. The amount of mortgage interest deducted by taxpayers increased sharply from $2004$ to $2008$ but fell through $2017$ because of falling housing values and historically low mortgage rates, before climbing back up to over $80$ percent in $2020.$ Charitable contributions: The share of itemizers reporting charitable contributions declined from $91$ percent in $1988$ to $81$ percent in $2020.$ Much of that drop occurred between $2005$ and $2007,$ after Congress required written confirmations of cash gifts and limited deductions for donations of clothing and used vehicles. In $2023,$ the earned income tax credit $($EITC$)$ begins to phase out at $$21,560$ for single parents and $$28,120$ for married couples with one child, limiting EITC eligibility to low$-$income families. The beginning and ending points of the phaseout range determine who is eligible for these credits or deductions.