Blog
State Rundown 10/22: Despite Obstacles, Progressive Taxes Define 2026
• By ITEP Staff
As more states move to raise revenue and tax the rich, anti-tax lobbyists and lawmakers are hard at work to undo that progress. Despite pushback, important conversations around needed revenue continue.
New State Taxes on the Wealthy Raise Revenue and Rebalance Tax Codes, Advancing Racial Justice
• By Brakeyshia Samms
Taxing the rich is proven fiscal policy – it raises revenue for vital public services and makes tax codes fairer. But a part of the debate that rarely gets enough attention: taxing the rich is also one of the most effective tools available for advancing racial equity.
2026 Sessions in Review: States Fund Tax Credits by Preserving, Raising Revenue
• By Aidan Davis
In a year of cautious uncertainty around current and ongoing revenues, many state lawmakers strengthened their tax credits for families and children.
2026 Sessions in Review: States Move to Tax the Rich and Corporations
• By Aidan Davis
This year several states raised income tax rates on high-income people to fund crucial services and make progress toward remedying the regressive tilt of their tax codes.
States Are Standing Up to the Monster Known as QSBS
• By Nick Johnson
We estimate that by 2032, QSBS will be costing states $1.1 billion a year, and since states must balance their budgets, that’s money they can’t use for public services.
As Inequality Grows, More States Look to Tax the Rich
• By Alex Welch
From surcharges on the income of high-earners to higher taxes on second homes, here are recent steps states have taken to tax the rich.
State Rundown 4/16: Tax Day, a New Millionaires’ Tax and Late Blooming State Tax Action
• By ITEP Staff
Yesterday was Tax Day, and with many state legislative sessions wrapping, some tax changes are gearing up or crossing over the finish line.
Tax Break for Ultra-wealthy Investors Takes a Hit in Maine and Oregon
• By Nick Johnson
Policymakers in Maine and Oregon wisely said “no” last week to an income tax break for deep-pocketed tech investors and venture capitalists that was expanded in last year’s federal tax bill.
Maine Passes Millionaires’ Tax and Pushes Back on Federal Changes
• By Marco Guzman
Maine Gov. Janet Mills on Friday put her seal of approval on a supplemental budget bill that includes a “millionaires’ tax.”
State Rundown 4/8: Budget and Tax Packages Take Shape as Sine Die Approaches in Many States
• By ITEP Staff
State legislative sessions are wrapping up, and final tax and budget packages are making their way to governors’ desks.
State Rundown 4/1: No Fooling Around Anymore in Washington, But Cruel Pranks in South Carolina
• By ITEP Staff
In Washington, Gov. Bob Ferguson and lawmakers decided to stop fooling around with one of the nation’s most upside-down tax codes and finally brought to life a new millionaires’ tax, the first new income tax created in a state since 1991.
State Rundown 3/18: New Mexico Enacts Most Significant Corporate Tax Reform of the Year
• By ITEP Staff
As states lawmakers continue to weigh their linkages to the federal tax code in light of the recent federal tax law, New Mexico provides a blueprint for limiting multinational corporate tax avoidance.
State Rundown 3/4: Budget Realities Set In
• By ITEP Staff
As many state legislative sessions near or cross the halfway point, lawmakers are facing tough choices.
State Rundown 2/25: Sausage-Making Season Is Upon Us
• By ITEP Staff
National Sausage Month isn’t until October, but now is the time of year when state lawmakers are really diving into their sausage-making processes, as separate legislative houses and oftentimes political parties send competing bills, budgets, and visions back and forth to grind out their differences.
State Rundown 2/11: This Valentine’s Day, Conscious Decoupling Is Our Love Language
• By ITEP Staff
While some may be excited for a romantic Valentine’s Day this weekend, many state lawmakers are breaking up and decoupling from recent federal tax changes that are poised to leave states with revenue shortfalls – much like a bad date who forgets their wallet and asks you to pick up the tab.
What Did 2025 State Tax Changes Mean for Racial and Economic Equity?
• By Brakeyshia Samms
The results are a mixed bag, with some states enacting promising policies that will improve tax equity and others going in the opposite direction.
State Rundown 2/5: Icy Roads Do Not Slow Tax Policy Debates
• By ITEP Staff
Despite wintry conditions across much of the country, that hasn’t stopped state lawmakers from debating major tax policy changes.
States Can Push Back Against Reckless Federal Tax Policy. Here’s How.
• By Aidan Davis, Wesley Tharpe
They should take steps to protect and boost their own revenues. And they should take a second look at their own tax cuts.
Conforming to the ‘No Tax on Tips’ Gimmick Just Got Riskier and Costlier for States
• By Nick Johnson
An unknown number of workers who previously were assumed to be ineligible for the tax break may nonetheless claim it.
State Rundown 10/27: As Temperatures Cool Tax Policy Heats Up
• By ITEP Staff
States across the nation are debating how best to respond to costly new federal tax cuts.
State Rundown 9/18: Lawmakers Confront Revenue Loss from Federal Policy Changes
• By ITEP Staff
Some states are trying to avoid revenue loss while others are welcoming it and doubling down.
State Tax Action in 2025: Amid Uncertainty, Tax Cuts and New Revenue
• By Aidan Davis, Neva Butkus, Marco Guzman
Federal policy choices on tariffs, taxes, and spending cuts will be deeply felt by all states, which will have less money available to fund key priorities. This year some states raised revenue to ensure that their coffers were well-funded, some proceeded with warranted caution, and many others passed large regressive tax cuts that pile on to the massive tax cuts the wealthiest just received under the federal megabill.
Which States Expanded Refundable Credits in 2025?
• By Neva Butkus
Refundable tax credits were a big part of state tax policy conversations this year. In 2025, nine states improved or created Child Tax Credits or Earned Income Tax Credits.
How Much Would Every Family in Every State Get if the Megabill’s Tax Cuts Given to the Rich Had Instead Been Evenly Divided?
• By Michael Ettlinger
If instead of giving $117 billion to the richest 1 percent, that money had been evenly divided among all Americans, we'd each get $343 - or nearly $1,400 for a family of four.
State Rundown 7/8: State Tax Cuts Continue Despite Federal Megabill Passing
• By ITEP Staff
The last states are wrapping up legislative sessions, and some are crossing the finish line with major income tax cuts.
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