Policy Matters Ohio: Ohio’s Tax Structure and Racial Disparities
ITEP Work in ActionOur success as a state and a nation depends on whether all people, regardless of race, have the opportunity to thrive. From the beginning, American policies and practices oppressed, exploited and excluded Black, brown and Indigenous people, who still face obstacles to good jobs, housing, educational opportunities and health care. As a result, wealth held by Black and brown families amounts to a fraction of what white families have. Ohio’s tax system could help, but it doesn’t. An analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), a national nonprofit research group with a sophisticated model of the tax system, shows how Ohio’s unbalanced tax system is more favorable for white Ohioans, on average, and less favorable for Black, brown and Indigenous people. Rebalancing the state’s tax system would reduce the inequity for Ohioans of color and generate revenue needed to build opportunity and drive economic growth: good schools, safe and affordable housing and healthy residents in all communities.