A South Carolina Working Families Tax Credit would: -Lift more working South Carolinians out of poverty; -Relieve the growing burden of taxation on low and moderate income working South Carolinians; and -Encourage and reward work. Read the Full Report (PDF)

Measure 59, which would allow an unlimited deduction of federal income taxes on state tax returns, offers no tax break to more than three out of four Oregon taxpayers. And yet the measure’s hefty price tag — more than about 9 percent of General Fund revenues, each budget cycle — would force deep cuts in […]

Next year, the Oregon Legislative Assembly may face two different income tax measures purporting to help working families. One plan, proposed by Republicans in the legislature, would double the size of Oregon’s two lowest income tax brackets, doubling the share of income that is taxed at 5 and 7 percent (hereinafter, the “Tax Bracket Increase”).[1] […]

Tax cuts enacted between 2004 and 2006 will reduce Oklahoma’s revenues by more than $800 million when fully phased-in. Among the many tax cuts, the two largest involved cutting the top personal income tax rate and raising the standard deduction. Read the Full Report (PDF)

North Dakota’s proposed Measure 2, a major change to the state’s income tax that will appear on the November ballot, would be detrimental to the state for three principal reasons: 1. Measure 2 is risky and short-sighted. 2. Measure 2 is imbalanced and would prevent broadbased tax changes that could benefit all North Dakota families. […]

The family budgets of low- and moderate-income Oklahomans are under increasing strain from the rapidly rising costs of such essentials as food, fuel and utilities. Food costs rose 5.9 percent over the past year, according to the government’s August inflation data. Price increases have been particularly steep for such dietary staples as dairy (6.4 percent […]

In this atmosphere of emergency, some of the legislation is moving with less deliberation than might be expected of tax changes that, when fully implemented, would likely cost the state at least $400 million a year in lost revenue. That is in addition to declines in state sales and personal income tax revenue that New […]

Public investments make a difference. Your tax dollars combine with everyone else’s to educate our children, keep our communities safe, move people to work over roads and transit systems, and care for the disabled and poor. Read the Full Report (PDF)

THIS REPORT RECOMMENDS that the State of Hawai‘i adopt two tax measures to address the needs of low income individuals and families: 1. A refundable Hawai‘i Earned Income Tax Credit. We propose the Hawai‘i EITC be fixed at 20 percent of the taxpayer’s federal refundable earned income tax credit. 2. A non-refundable Hawai‘i Poverty Tax […]

Due to the EITC’s overwhelming success, 24 states have their own SEITC programs modeled after the federal credit. A West Virginia SEITC would increase tax fairness and provide families with additional income to help them close the gap between what they earn and what they need to meet basic expenses. Read the Full Report (PDF)

In this time of economic turmoil, one of the most effective steps state lawmakers can take to stimulate Missouri’s economy is to create a State Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). A State EITC would benefit more than 440,000 Missouri families and is also proven to be a valuable economic stimulus, generating more than $64.3 million […]

The 61st Legislature is faced with the unenviable challenge of balancing the budget during a time of economic downturn and revenue uncertainty. Introducing a new top marginal tax rate for households with incomes over $250,000 will offer fiscal security for Montana while restoring some of the progressivity of the Montana income tax system. It will […]

Read the Original Full Power Point Presentation

Read the Original Full Power Point Presentation

New York faces one of the largest budget deficits in the country for the coming year at $14.2 billion. The State’s 2009-10 fiscal year begins April 1, 2009. Two responses to addressing the crisis have dominated the policy debate. While both acknowledge the detrimental impact Wall Street revenue declines have had on the State’s fiscal […]

The 61st Legislature is faced with the unenviable challenge of balancing the budget during a time of economic downturn and revenue uncertainty. Ending preferential treatment for capital gains income will offer fiscal security for Montana while restoring some of the progressivity of the Montana income tax system. Furthermore, extensive research shows that there is little […]

Washington State is in a deep economic recession. Working families are struggling to make ends meet as more and more people lose their jobs, their homes, and their health insurance. Businesses are struggling to survive as consumer spending plummets. An unprecedented state budget deficit threatens to make the situation worse. Legislators have responded to the […]

Washington State has been losing ground on education for 15 years, slipping towards the bottom of national rankings in class size and school funding. Our children, workers, and businesses deserve better. The recession highlights how difficult it is to raise additional revenues to maintain and improve public services, given Washington’s outmoded and regressive tax structure. […]

Currently, Pennsylvania is the only major fossil fuel-producing state that does not levy a mineral extraction, or severance, tax to recover some of the costs borne by citizens and to compensate them for the loss of a finite natural resource. Levying a tax on natural gas extraction will help achieve both of these goals. The […]

For the 2005 tax year, more than 800,000 Ohio families received the federal Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), a refundable tax credit for workers in families that make less than $42,000. The average EITC in Ohio was $1,756, bringing more than $1.4 billion into Ohio communities. Adding a 5 percent Ohio EITC to supplement the […]

Recently, the Missouri House of Representatives passed HJR 36, a constitutional amendment which proposes dramatic changes to the state’s revenue structure by eliminating the individual and corporate income taxes and replacing them with a greatly expanded sales tax. If passed by the State Senate and then approved by voters, this shift would create a significant […]

A DC Councilmember has proposed raising the income tax rate on the District’s wealthiest residents as a way to generate money for next year’s budget. The idea has been met with some skepticism, including the belief that this will push the well-off to leave the city. Yet for several reasons, this bill should be taken […]

Capital gains tax preferences are costly, inequitable, and ineffective. They deprive states of millions of dollars in needed funds, benefit almost exclusively the very wealthiest members of society, and fail to promote economic growth in the manner their proponents claim. Read the Full Report (PDF)

Connecticut’s revenue system is falling short of providing the revenues we need to maintain the public structures that keep Connecticut strong and vibrant, including our education, health, public safety, environmental protection, and transportation systems. This candidate brief reviews problems with Connecticut’s state revenue system. In Connecticut, wealthy residents pay a smaller share of their income […]

This issue brief explains the importance of a sound tax system, with recommendations on improving the equity, adequacy and efficiency of Rhode Island tax structure.