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.
6 min read
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Are Tax Rebates a Good Way to Provide Relief from Rising Prices?
States are flush with cash, but taxpayers’ purchasing power is being eroded by high inflation. Tax rebates, gas tax holidays, and other temporary tax expedients have the potential to add to existing inflation—but good intentions do not always make for good policy.
5 min read
Ohio’s CAT Is Out of the Bag
Coming out of the pandemic, the state of Ohio is estimating significant tax revenue growth, and some lawmakers are looking to take advantage and repeal the Commercial Activity Tax (CAT), one of only a few gross receipts taxes still levied in the country.
7 min read
Mississippians Would Benefit from Sustainable Income Tax Reduction
Mississippi lawmakers should deliver tax relief in 2022, but they need not take an all-or-nothing approach. There are many ways to improve the state’s tax code, even if full income tax repeal doesn’t remain on the table.
6 min read
Federal Judge Rules Against ARPA’s Tax Mandate
Kentucky and Tennessee won an important legal victory Friday when a federal court ruled that the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA)’s restrictions on state fiscal autonomy were unconstitutional and enjoined (blocked) the enforcement of those provisions against both states.
7 min read
States Respond to Strong Fiscal Health with Income Tax Reforms
As states close their books for fiscal year 2021, many have much more revenue on hand than they anticipated last year. Eleven states have responded by reducing income tax rates and making related structural reforms as they strive to solidify a competitive advantage in an increasingly competitive national landscape.
29 min read
Wisconsin’s Surplus Presents Opportunity for Down Payment on Future Economic Growth
As Wisconsin emerges from the pandemic, state policymakers have a rare opportunity to reinvest excess revenues in a structurally sound manner that will make the state more attractive to individuals and businesses, promote a quicker and more robust economic recovery, and put the state on the path to increased in-state investment and growth for many years to come.
7 min read
Oklahoma Passes Corporate and Individual Income Tax Reductions
Last Friday, Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt (R) signed House Bills 2960, 2962, and 2963 into law as part of a budget agreement, bringing the legislature’s tax plans across the finish line. These bills will reduce the state’s corporate and individual income tax rates beginning in tax year 2022.
3 min read
14.8% Individual Income Tax and 16.1% Corporate Income Tax Coming To New York City?
Raising rates on those with the most flexibility to leave—or never to return—risks turning those fears into a self-fulfilling prophesy.
3 min read
ARPA Allocates $2 Billion to Nonexistent County Governments
The government of Hartford County, Connecticut is in line to receive $173 million in local aid under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). There’s only one problem: the government of Hartford County doesn’t exist, nor do any of Connecticut’s other counties have county-level government despite being allocated a collective $691 million under the bill.
4 min read
State Aid in American Rescue Plan Act Is 116 Times States’ Revenue Losses
Here’s each state’s estimated revenue gains or losses in 2020, alongside the state and local aid that would be allocated to each under the American Rescue Plan Act.
8 min read
Where State Unemployment Compensation Trust Funds Stand in December
With 2020 nearing its close, state unemployment compensation trust funds continue to struggle under the weight of so many pandemic-created beneficiaries, though some funds are beginning to stabilize as people increasingly return to work.
3 min read
State Tax Collections Down 4.4 Percent Through September, While Local Tax Collections Rise
Combined state and local tax collections were down only $7.6 billion across the period, representing a total state and local tax revenue decline of 0.7 percent compared to the first nine months of 2019.
6 min read
How Would the Proposed $160 Billion in State and Local Aid Be Allocated?
A bipartisan coalition of Senators unveiled a $908 billion COVID-19 relief bill on Tuesday, which includes, among other provisions, $160 billion in additional aid to state and local governments. It is worth briefly exploring what this would mean, and the amounts of aid your state might expect.
5 min read
Prospects for Federal Tax Policy After the 2020 Election
President Biden and Congress should concentrate on areas of common ground, finding incremental places to improve the tax code. A bipartisan bill recently introduced to help retirement savings is a good model for what incremental reform may look like.
4 min read
State Income and Sales Tax Revenues Slide in Second Quarter
Today marked the release of second-quarter GDP data and provides a new glimpse into early changes in state and local revenues and spending. All told, second-quarter state and local tax receipts came in about 3.8 percent lower than they did in the same quarter a year ago. Income and sales taxes fell considerably while property and excise tax collections remained stable.
3 min read
(Webinar) Figuring Out Phase Four: Next Steps on Federal and State Coronavirus Response
As U.S. businesses struggle to recover from the economic downturn, Congress and the White House continue to debate a phase four relief package, which could include anything from incentives for domestic travel and a payroll tax cut to more fundamental reforms like enacting permanent full cost recovery.
2 min read
Tax Options to Promote Short-Term Recovery and Long-Term Economic Growth in Wisconsin
From a revenue standpoint, Wisconsin was better off than many states going into this crisis, but the policy decisions—including tax policy decisions—state policymakers make in the months ahead will have far-reaching implications for how quickly jobs and wages are restored in Wisconsin.
7 min read
State Forecasts Indicate $121 Billion 2-Year Tax Revenue Losses Compared to FY 2019
Revised state revenue forecasts show a significant decline in projected revenues for both the recently concluded FY 2020 and current FY 2021, though the picture they paint is considerably less dire than many feared a few months ago.
13 min read
Breaking Down State and Local Aid under the SMART Act
The SMART Act, sponsored by Senators Bob Menendez and Bill Cassidy and Rep. Mikie Sherrill, would provide $500 billion in flexible funding to state and local governments.
6 min read