Kentucky Legislature Sends Pro-Growth Tax Changes to Governor
Kentucky is making commendable progress toward a more modern and competitive tax code, but more work on comprehensive tax reform should be prioritized next session.
7 min readKentucky is making commendable progress toward a more modern and competitive tax code, but more work on comprehensive tax reform should be prioritized next session.
7 min readAfter a whirlwind of cuts and reforms in 2021, it looks like 2022 might be an even bigger year for state tax codes. Republican and Democratic governors alike used their annual State of the State addresses to call for tax reform, and there is already serious momentum from state lawmakers nationwide to get the job done.
3 min readBefore declaring victory, it is imperative to get the details right. The latest proposal is a drastic improvement over the last one, but there is still more work to be done if the Magnolia State is to sustain the intended transformation.
7 min readBy failing to keep pace with modern consumption patterns, sales taxes have become less neutral, less equitable, and less economically efficient over time.
16 min readWe identify 13 of the highest tax reform priorities Nebraska policymakers should consider in their effort to create a more growth-friendly tax code. We also offer a sample comprehensive tax reform plan to show one way policymakers could begin tackling these objectives over the next couple legislative sessions, with further progress to be made in the years ahead.
8 min readAs states look for a path out of these fiscally troubling times, Louisiana has several options for aspects of its tax code to promote economic recovery and growth. The Pelican State’s federal deductibility, Corporation Franchise Tax, and sales tax structure present opportunities for beneficial tax reform in the wake of the coronavirus crisis.
3 min readWe examine whether excise taxes are a solution to budget deficits, and while the short answer to that question is no, there are of course nuances. Excise taxes can play a role in state revenues even as policymakers appreciate that excise taxes are not viable long-term revenue tools for general spending priorities.
21 min readBy almost any measure, Utah is, and deserves to be, the envy of its peers. Utah leads the country in job growth, and the state’s economy has grown at twice the rate of the nation at large. Utah’s income tax reforms adopted in 2007 established a model for other states to follow. But today, some of these gains are being undone—not by conscious policy choices, but by their absence.
6 min readWhen policymakers get in the habit of handpicking goods for which the sales tax does or does not apply, the tax base simultaneously erodes and becomes more complex.
25 min readDue in part to historical accident and also to the proliferation of exemptions, the effectiveness of the state sales tax continues to erode. The median state sales tax, which should apply to all personal consumption, is nonly applied to 23 percent of personal consumption.
25 min read