State Tax

Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves (R), in his budget proposal for fiscal year (FY) 2022, has announced his goal of phasing out the state’s income tax by 2030. Mississippi’s income tax currently has three marginal rates of 3 percent, 4 percent, and 5 percent. The corporate rates and brackets match the individual rates and brackets, and

Key Findings: Excessive tax rates on cigarettes in some states induce substantial black and gray market movement of tobacco products into high-tax states from low-tax states or foreign sources. New York has the highest inbound smuggling activity, with an estimated 53.2 percent of cigarettes consumed in the state deriving from smuggled sources in 2018. New

Key Findings A typical American household with four phones on a “family share” plan, paying $100 per month for taxable wireless service, can expect to pay about $270 per year in taxes, fees, and surcharges—up from $260 in 2019. Nationally, these impositions make up about 22.6 percent of the average bill—the highest rate ever. Illinois

This week’s map examines states’ rankings on the individual income tax component of the 2021 State Business Tax Climate Index. The individual income tax is important to businesses because states tax sole proprietorships, partnerships, and in most cases limited liability companies (LLCs) and S corporations under the individual income tax code. However, even traditional C corporations are

In proposed regulations released this week, the Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have signaled their intention to bless one type of state workaround for the $10,000 State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction cap: entity-level taxes that allow owners of pass-through businesses to pay an additional state tax at the business

[1] Key Findings An ideal tax code is one that is simple, transparent, neutral, and stable, but many states, including Nebraska, have certain tax provisions that depart from these principles of sound tax policy. The COVID-19 pandemic and associated economic fallout have shed light on structural deficiencies in states’ tax codes, including narrow-based sales taxes

This Election Day, Colorado voters will weigh in on Proposition 116, the Decrease Income Tax Rate from 4.63% to 4.55% Initiative. It would permanently reduce the state’s flat income tax rate from 4.63 to 4.55 percent and be retroactive to January 1, 2020, meaning taxpayers would benefit from the relief starting this year. It is

After six unsuccessful tries at passage, it appears the coronavirus crisis has tipped the scales in favor of Gov. Phil Murphy’s (D) millionaires tax. After reaching a deal with legislators earlier this month, Murphy included a tax increase on those making more than $1 million in his FY 2021 budget. The New Jersey legislature confirmed

Key Findings: California has one of the nation’s least business-friendly tax environments, ranking 48th on the Tax Foundation’s State Business Tax Climate Index, which measures tax structure. However, the state’s property tax code is a relative bright spot, with the state ranking 14th on that component of the Index. If approved by California voters on

Today, the House Republican Study Committee released a proposal to address education, labor, and welfare policy with the aim of expanding opportunity, liberty, and free enterprise for all Americans. Among the 118 policy recommendations by the task force in the “Reclaiming the American Dream” white paper are several tax policy changes across the education, labor,

This week’s map shows the five states that have an Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) in their individual income tax codes: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Iowa, and Minnesota. Under an individual AMT, many taxpayers are required to calculate their income tax liability under two different systems and pay the higher amount. The federal AMT was created in 1963, after Congress discovered

Today’s map takes another look at property taxes, this time focusing on states’ effective tax rates on owner-occupied housing. This is the average amount of residential property taxes actually paid, expressed as a percentage of home value. Because property taxes are tied to housing values, it makes sense that the actual dollar amounts of property

Key Findings The future of funding for America’s highways has been the topic of much political discussion for decades. While many states have increased motor fuel tax rates over the last decade, the federal government has not updated the gas tax since 1993. The motor fuel tax is a relatively well-designed tax which acts as

Property taxes are an important tool to help finance state and local governments. In fiscal year 2017, property taxes comprised 31.9 percent of total state and local tax collections in the United States, more than any other source of tax revenue. In that same year, property taxes accounted for a whopping 72 percent of local

On the last day of Nebraska’s recently reconvened 2020 legislative session, legislators today granted final approval to LB1107, a bill to provide state income tax relief to help offset local property taxes paid, as well as to make adjustments to Nebraska’s business incentives program. This compromise is the result of many months of negotiations in

In its search for revenue to fill in budget gaps, Nevada is considering a mining tax increase through a constitutional amendment. Two resolutions with competing tax plans (AJR1 and AJR2) passed both chambers without amendments on August 2nd, within three days of when they were initially introduced. The legislature adjourned on August 6 without scheduling

According to news reports, the Vermont legislature is ready to advance S54 this month or next, to legalize cultivation and sales of marijuana in the state beginning in 2022. Versions of the bill have been approved by both chambers. The current regulatory situation in Vermont is unique, as marijuana possession has been legal since January

Today marked the release of both second-quarter GDP and national accounts data and provides a new glimpse into early changes in state and local revenues and spending. All told, second-quarter (Q2) 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

Key Findings Connecticut’s property tax burdens are rising rapidly, with the state’s effective property tax rates on owner-occupied housing now among the highest in the country at 1.7 percent of housing value. Property tax burdens in Connecticut continue to increase even as property values decline, whereas other states—including neighboring Massachusetts and New York—have managed to

Pass-through businesses, such as sole proprietorships, S corporations, and partnerships, make up a majority of businesses in the United States. The owners of these firms pay individual income tax on income derived from these businesses. The marginal tax rates vary for pass-through firms depending on the state where they operate, as states tax individual income