Business Property Taxes

Sources of Government Revenue in the OECD, 2022 Update

Designing tax policy in a way that sustainably finances government activities while minimizing distortions is important for supporting a productive economy.

2022 State Business Tax Climate Index

While there are many ways to show how much is collected in taxes by state governments, our State Business Tax Climate Index is designed to show how well states structure their tax systems and provides a road map for improvement.

Tracking 2021 Election Results: State Tax Ballot Measures

Through 10 ballot measures across four states—Colorado, Louisiana, Texas, and Washington—voters will decide significant questions of state tax policy.

Coloradans to Vote on Structurally Unsound Property and Cannabis Tax Changes

Movers and Shakers in the International Tax Competitiveness Index

The Index provides lessons for policymakers when they are thinking of ways to remove distortions from their tax systems and remain competitive against their peers. The further up a country moves on the Index, the more likely it is to have broader tax bases, relatively lower rates, and policies that are less distortionary to individual or business decisions. Going the other way reveals a policy preference for narrow tax bases, special tax policy tools, and rules that make it difficult for compliance.

International Tax Competitiveness Index 2021

A well-structured tax code (that’s both competitive and neutral) is easy for taxpayers to comply with and can promote economic development while raising sufficient revenue for a government’s priorities.

Even Within States, Tax Treatment Differs by Industry

States can enhance tax neutrality across industries by reforming tax structures that penalize certain business activity, leaning less on generous incentives, and focusing more on creating a tax code that provides for low and competitive burdens for all comers.

Property and Sales Taxes Are a Major Driver of Corporations’ State and Local Tax Burdens

As policymakers consider ways to improve their tax structure to encourage business investment and promote economic growth, corporate income tax rate reductions are a crucial part of that conversation, but they shouldn’t be the only consideration.

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.

Arizona Legislators Consider Lower, Flatter Income Tax

The income tax changes in HB 2900 as introduced would improve Arizona’s individual income tax structure and economic competitiveness, making the state more attractive to individuals and pass-through businesses .

How Much Does Your State Collect in Property Taxes Per Capita?

Property taxes are an important source of revenue for local and state governments. In FY 2018, property taxes generated over 30 percent of total U.S. state and local tax collections and over 70 percent of local tax collections.

Taxing Capital – An International Comparison

The taxation of capital—at both the individual and the corporate level—is much debated and affects economic growth by lowering the incentives to save and invest.

What Location Matters Can Tell Us About State Tax Competitiveness

Location Matters is an account of tax complexity and the ways that tax structure affect competitiveness. For policymakers, it represents an opportunity to explore the seemingly more arcane tax provisions that can have a significant impact on business tax burdens, and to discover how their tax code—often completely by accident—picks winners and losers.

Location Matters 2021: The State Tax Costs of Doing Business

A landmark comparison of corporate tax costs in all 50 states, Location Matters provides a comprehensive calculation of real-world tax burdens, going beyond headline rates to demonstrate how tax codes impact businesses and offering policymakers a road map to improvement.

These States Will Pay You to Move. Does That Strategy Make Sense?

State and local tax policy have always mattered, but the rise of remote work is bringing tax burdens and economic competitiveness to the forefront. It is a development that states cannot afford to ignore.

Louisiana Aims at Comprehensive Tax Reform

While many of the tax proposals work in tandem, some conflicts continue to exist. If lawmakers were able to repeal federal deductibility, reduce income tax rates, finish the job on inventory taxation, and phase out the capital stock tax, this would represent a marked improvement in the state’s tax climate, eliminating several of the most uncompetitive features of the current code.

How High Are State and Local Tax Collections in Your State?

Although Tax Day has been pushed back this year, mid-April is still a good occasion to take a look at tax collections in the United States. Because differing state populations can make overall comparisons difficult, today’s state tax map shows state and local tax collections per capita in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

IMF Tax Proposals: Shrink Inequality or Sink Post-Pandemic Recovery?

To help countries face the pandemic-related financing needs while reducing inequality, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has released a series of policy recommendations based on a temporary COVID-19 tax, levied on high incomes or wealth.

Does Your State Tax Business Inventory?

Inventory taxes are levied regardless of whether a business makes a profit, adding to the burden of businesses already struggling to stay afloat.

Reliance on Property Taxes in Europe

Property taxes are levied on the assets of an individual or business. There are different types of property taxes, with recurrent taxes on immovable property (such as property taxes on land and buildings) the only ones levied by all countries covered. Other types of property taxes include estate, inheritance, and gift taxes, net wealth taxes, and taxes on financial and capital transactions.