Jared Walczak

The State Business Tax Climate Index Is Your Guide to Economic “Wins Above Replacement”

2024 State Business Tax Climate Index

In recognition of the fact that there are better and worse ways to raise revenue, our Index focuses on how state tax revenue is raised, not how much. The rankings, therefore, reflect how well states structure their tax systems.

The Future of Arkansas Tax Reform: Next Steps on the Road Map to Competitiveness

Responsible pro-growth reforms to Arkansas’s tax code can help ensure that the Natural State is indeed a Land of Opportunity.

Leave Worldwide Combined Reporting in the ‘80s, Where It Belongs

Given enough time, everything old is new again—including tax ideas best consigned to history. But worldwide combined reporting, which a few states flirted with in the 1980s, is rearing its head again.

The Wayfair Sales Tax Ruling, Five Years Later

It’s the 5th anniversary of the groundbreaking Wayfair Supreme Court decision–a ruling that marked a new era of sales tax collection and changed how we think about taxation in the digital age.

The Faulty Revenue Estimate Behind Minnesota’s Consideration of Worldwide Combined Reporting

As Minnesota lawmakers consider making theirs the first state to mandate worldwide combined reporting, they are relying on a revenue estimate that is—this may not be the technical term—completely bogus.

America’s Progressive Tax and Transfer System: Federal, State, and Local Tax and Transfer Distributions

The overall U.S. tax and transfer system is overwhelmingly progressive, and understanding the extent—and source—of that progressivity is essential for lawmakers considering the trade-offs associated with each tax policy decision.

Washington Supreme Court Affirms Capital Gains Tax and Invites Challenge to Broader Income Tax Restrictions

The Washington Supreme Court not only gave its blessing to a capital gains tax that runs afoul of the state constitution, but it also set out a welcome mat for legislators eager to implement a broader income tax.

West Virginia Lawmakers Reach Deal on Tax Relief

In a day and age when businesses and individuals alike are increasingly mobile, West Virginians can be relieved that their state is getting off the sideline and into the action.

Cities Want to Tax Streaming Video Services, but They’re Not Sure Why

A growing number of cities, in red states like Arkansas and Texas, blue states like California and New Jersey, and purple states like Georgia and Nevada, have pursued streaming taxes in recent years.

Local Income Taxes: A Primer

Most states avoid municipal income taxes for good reason. These taxes are more volatile and less economically competitive than other forms of taxation available to local governments, and add substantial complexity for governments and taxpayers alike.

New York, Oregon, and Other States Eye Much Higher Taxes on High Earners

Despite robust revenues, some state lawmakers are champing at the bit to raise taxes on higher-income households, sometimes to extraordinary levels.

Will the Federal Government Tax Your State Tax Rebate?

If your state issued tax rebates last year, you might have to pay federal income tax on the rebate you received. Maybe. Who knows? Unfortunately, not the IRS—at least not yet.

There’s Still Room for Responsible State Income Tax Relief in 2023

Forty-three states adopted tax relief in 2021 or 2022—often in both years—and of those, 21 cut state income tax rates. It’s been a remarkable trend, driven by robust state revenues and an increasingly competitive tax environment.

State Tax Policy as an Inflation Response

At the end of 2022, prices were 14.6 percent higher than they were two years prior. That’s the fastest inflation rate over any two calendar years since the stagflation era of the late 1970s. State policymakers are understandably interested in bringing any tools at their disposal to bear on the problem. And many of them are reaching for tax policy solutions.

West Virginia Is Being Left Behind on Tax Relief

West Virginia is one of only seven states that hasn’t offered any significant tax relief since 2021—and five of the other six forgo an individual income tax.

Iowa Proposal to Rein in Property Taxes Misses the Mark

On the heels of adopting one of the most comprehensive state tax reform packages in years, Iowa lawmakers are back in Des Moines with property tax relief in their sights. But while the issue is worthy of their attention, House File 1 (HF 1) as currently drafted misses the mark.

Wealth Tax Proposals Are Back as States Take Aim at Investment

In a coordinated effort, lawmakers in seven states that collectively house about 60 percent of the nation’s wealth—California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, New York, and Washington—are introducing wealth tax legislation on Thursday.

The Efficiency of State Administration of Local Taxes

The logic that has prevailed for local sales taxes should apply equally to other taxes that localities impose on multijurisdictional businesses, including local tourism taxes. The evidence is clear that central administration of local taxes reduces compliance costs without sacrificing local revenue.

States Should Make Full Expensing Permanent to Help Curb Inflation

In times of high inflation, states should consider adopting permanent full expensing because it boosts long-run productivity, economic output, and wages.