Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy

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The Bond Buyer: States Raising Gas Taxes for Road Revenue

April 3, 2015

“Gasoline tax hikes are one of the biggest trends we’re seeing this year,” said Carl Davis, a senior analyst at the Institute of Taxation and Economic Policy. “That’s not surprising because revenues are falling short, and states are trying to catch up.” Gasoline tax proposals are on a three-year roll, Davis said, after no state […]

Fast Company: Taxes Could Help Reduce Inequality

April 2, 2015

According to the latest Who Pays? report from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, which documents the shares of income paid in taxes to state and local governments for all 50 states, “virtually every state’s tax system is fundamentally unfair, taking a much greater share of income from middle- and low-income families than from wealthy […]

San Jose Mercury News: Sales taxes hit 10 percent in Hayward, San Leandro, Union City, Albany and El Cerrito

April 2, 2015

When it comes to tax fairness, California gets high marks for its income tax, which targets the wealthy, but a demerit for its sales tax, which ranks among the highest in the nation, according to the Institute of Taxation and Economic Policy, based in Washington, D.C. “Any tax that is based on what you consume […]

The Tucson Weekly: A Rich Switch

April 2, 2015

The first study came from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, which regularly gathers data to show how the tax burden is spread across a state’s population. ITEP’s most recent report, released in January, showed that Arizona was eighth worst state in terms of pushing the tax burden on lower earners because it relies […]

The Atlantic: How Red States Learned to Love the Gas Tax

March 31, 2015

If nothing has changed in Washington, why are Republicans so tax-happy on the state level—at least when it comes to fuel? “The difference is states have to balance their budgets,” said Carl Davis, a senior analyst at ITEP. Unlike Congress, state lawmakers can’t simply borrow money and accumulate debt when the coffers run dry, and […]

Phoenix Business: Arizona Misses List of Top 10 Tax Shift States

March 31, 2015

Turns out, Arizona missed a new list that looks at the supply-side tax cut to shift income equality. The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy found ten states passed laws this session that effectively shift tax burdens to the poor and middle class. Each of the identified states (listed below) passed trickle-down tax cuts, according […]

C-SPAN Washington Journal: State and Local Tax Systems

March 30, 2015

Matthew Gardner, executive director of ITEP, talked about the fairness of state and local tax systems in each of the fifty states and the District of Columbia and what this means as people file their income taxes. He talked about how the 2015 edition of the report by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), […]

Idaho Press Tribune: Tax Plan Gives Big Cut to Top 1 Percent

March 30, 2015

The analysis is provided by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a national nonpartisan think tank that works on state and federal tax policy issues. The three pieces of the bill combined result in a tax increase between $68 for the lowest earners to $192 for those making between $38,000 and $61,000 per year. […]

Albany Business Review: New Yorkers Face Highest Tax Burden the Country

March 30, 2015

Wallethub, a personal finance website, analyzed data from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy to determine the impact that income, sales and property taxes have on low-, middle- and high-income families. Read more

USA Today: Lawmakers, Farmers Urge Repeal of Estate Tax

March 30, 2015

Matthew Gardner, executive director with the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, said there are special tax breaks in place to make sure that most small family-owned farms and businesses will be exempt from the estate tax. For the few that do have to pay, he said there are rules allowing those taxes to be […]

KPLU: If Only We Had Idaho’s Tax

March 27, 2015

If you’re poor and you live in Washington state, you wind up forking over almost 17 percent of your income in state and local taxes. That’s according to a recent report from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. But if you live in, say, Boise or Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, state and local taxes only […]

Vermont Business: Vermont Has the Capacity to Avoid 2016 Budget Cuts

March 26, 2015

“Total personal income” is a broad measure of income used by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP). It is based on filers under age 65 and includes adjusted gross income, which is the starting point used by most states to determine taxable income, as well as income typically not subject to tax, such […]

Arizona Daily Sun: Arizona Tax Burden Heavy for the Poor

March 26, 2015

Even more detailed figures from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy bear that out. It finds those in the top 1 percent of Arizona earners — those making more than $402,000 a year — are paying just 1 percent of what they make in sales taxes. Read more

Tucson Weekly: It’s True. Arizona Taxes Screw the Poor

March 26, 2015

In general, WalletHub is a font of half-baked statistics (I mean, it declared Tucson the fifth best city in “Efficient Spending on Education” because we spend so little on schools). But in this case, they got it right, and the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, which Fischer also cited, got it even more right in […]

The Citizen: New York Taxes Tough for Rich and Poor Residents

March 26, 2015

WalletHub used data from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy 2015 report to calculate the tax burdens — which included sales, property and income tax.  Read more  

Orlando Business Journal: Florida One of the Most Tax-Friendly States to Earn High Incomes

March 25, 2015

The study used data from the Washington, D.C.-based Institute on Taxation & Economic Policy’s 2015 report to generate estimates of the state-specific tax burdens at three income levels $25,000 (low income), $50,000 (medium) and $150,000 (high) to rank the states. Read more

The Times Daily: Alabama Tax Rankings in the Middle of the Pack for Low and Moderate Incomes

March 25, 2015

The Wallethub study, using data from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy’s 2015 report, identified the best states in which to be taxed according to income group. The study looked at three levels–low ($25,000); medium ($50,000) and high ($150,000). Read more

The Bergen Record: Why NJ Ends up on Those ‘Worst Place” Lists

March 25, 2015

On the other hand, that’s just a little higher than the 10 percent paid by low earners in the state – making New Jersey one of the most fair states in terms of how the tax burden is shared by low and high earners, according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, which supplied […]

Chatanooga Free Press: Tennessee Ranked as Top State for High-Income Earners

March 25, 2015

According to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy’s latest report, many taxes, such as payroll, sales, and some state and local taxes, are regressive. That means that they take more money from lower and middle income brackets than from wealthier families, WalletHub reported. Read more

KPLU: Washington Voters Once Passed an Income Tax by a Wider Margin Than Vote for Legal Booze

March 25, 2015

The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank, says Washington’s tax system is the most regressive in the nation. That’s because with our state’s heavy reliance on sales tax and lack of an income tax, the poorest 20 percent of residents pay 16.8 percent of their income in state and local […]

The Seattle Observer: Seattle Economy Soars Alongside Effort to Combat Worsening Inequality

March 25, 2015

Washington’s tax system, ranked as the most regressive in the country by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, is not helping. The lowest-earning families in the state “pay about 17% of their income in taxes. And our top 10 percent pay about 2.7% of their income”, said Pramila Jayapal, a Democratic state senator. All […]

Public News Service: North Carolina Taxpayers Report Leaner Returns in 2015

March 25, 2015

“The key thing about a tax system is it absolutely has to be adequate to meet the core public service commitments that we need to be making as a state,” says Sirota. “But the way in which we raise revenue is really critical.” Sirota says taxpayers making less than $67,000 a year – about 80 […]

Illinois Times: Angry Crowd Protests Rauner’s Budget

March 25, 2015

Herzenberg pointed out that Illinois was ranked fifth on the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy’s (ITEP) ‘Terrible Ten’ list of states with the most regressive tax systems. He said Illinois’ tax system is regressive because high-income earners spend a smaller percentage of their income on sales and consumption taxes than low-income and middle-income earners, […]

The Washington Times: What’s Not in Your Wallet?

March 25, 2015

To identify the best states to be taxed in, according to a taxpayer’s income group, WalletHub generated estimates of the state-specific tax burden on residents at three income levels — low ($25,000), medium ($50,000) and high ($150,000) — in each of the states, plus the District. Data was taken from the Institute on Taxation & […]

Florida Sun Sentinel: Florida’s gas, cell phone taxes among the highest in the nation

March 17, 2015

Another recent study found that Florida’s taxes hit the poor the most, largely through the sales tax. Those at the bottom fifth in income in Florida pay 13 percent of their income in state and local taxes, while the state’s top 1 percent pay only 2 percent, said the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, […]

Members of the media rely on ITEP for analysis and insight about how tax policies affect people. If you’re a reporter looking to talk to one of our experts, contact Jon Whiten at [email protected].