Facts & Figures 2023: How Does Your State Compare?
Facts & Figures serves as a one-stop state tax data resource that compares all 50 states on over 40 measures of tax rates, collections, burdens, and more.
2 min readFacts & Figures serves as a one-stop state tax data resource that compares all 50 states on over 40 measures of tax rates, collections, burdens, and more.
2 min readUnderstanding how tax brackets work can inform decisions about performing extra work through a second job or overtime, or pursuing new streams of income.
The changes put forth in a new package of bills would represent significant pro-growth change for Oklahoma that would set the state up for success in an increasingly competitive tax landscape.
7 min readTax reform should be about increasing fairness. And the way to get there is by reducing complexity and double taxation, not by doubling down on them.
5 min readPresident Biden’s new budget proposal outlines several major tax increases targeted at businesses and high-income individuals that would bring U.S. income tax rates far out of step with international norms.
7 min readAdopting a distributed profits tax would greatly simplify U.S. business taxes, reduce marginal tax rates on investment, and renew our country’s commitment to pro-growth tax policy.
6 min readDenmark (55.9 percent), France (55.4 percent), and Austria (55 percent) have the highest top statutory personal income tax rates among European OECD countries.
2 min readDesigning tax policy in a way that sustainably finances government activities while minimizing distortions is important for supporting a productive economy.
5 min readMost 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.
23 min readLevied in thousands of cities, counties, school districts, and other localities, local income taxes are often used to either lower other taxes (like property taxes) or raise more revenue for local services. While they may make sense on paper, local income taxes come with more challenges than other local revenue sources.
Individual income taxes are a major source of state government revenue, accounting for more than a third of state tax collections:
9 min readImmediately balancing the $20 trillion budget shortfall would take drastic, unwanted policy changes. Instead, lawmakers should target a more achievable goal, such as stabilizing debt and deficits with an eye toward comprehensive tax reform that can produce sufficient revenue with minimal economic harm.
4 min readPresident Biden shared his policy aspirations during the State of the Union address, outlining three tax proposals in his remarks: quadrupling the brand-new excise tax on stock buybacks, instituting a “billionaire minimum tax,” and extending the now-lapsed expanded Child Tax Credit. We discuss the prospects of major tax changes becoming law in a divided government and what these proposals signal about how President Biden thinks about tax policy as he enters the latter half of his first term.
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.
5 min readThe FairTax is a proposal to replace all major sources of the federal government’s revenue—the individual income tax, corporate income tax, estate and gift taxes, and payroll tax—with a national sales tax and rebate, abolishing the IRS in the process.
7 min readBy shifting to a flat income tax, Georgia has already made an important commitment to tax competitiveness. Although the state’s top rate threshold is already very low, a true single-rate income tax will help protect taxpayers from inflation-related tax increases and provide a buffer against rising tax rates in the future. To combine responsible rate reductions with these benefits, Georgia should create tax triggers that empower the state to keep pace with its competition.
3 min readA combination of long-standing IRS operational deficiencies, the agency’s temporary closure due to the pandemic, and the now-expired pandemic relief produced a perfect recipe for a paper backlog.
4 min readMost of the 2023 state tax changes represent net tax reductions, the result of an unprecedented wave of rate reductions and other tax cuts in the past two years as states respond to burgeoning revenues, greater tax competition in an era of enhanced mobility, and the impact of high inflation on residents.
20 min readThe year-end omnibus federal spending package makes a number of reforms to retirement savings accounts.
3 min readThe 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.
15 min read