Oklahoma
USA Today: These states will hike gas taxes ahead of record 4th of July travel
June 30, 2016
“Despite the fluctuations, most states have also gone years without changing their rates, according to a study by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Sixteen states have gone at least two decades without a gas-tax increase, according to the study. Five of those states have seen an increase since at least the 1980s: Alaska, […]
An updated version of this report has been published with data through July 1, 2017. Read this Policy Brief in PDF form Many states’ transportation budgets are in disarray, in part because they are trying to cover the rising cost of asphalt, machinery, and other construction materials with a gasoline tax rate that is rarely […]
New York Times: Oklahoma Makes the Poor Poorer
May 31, 2016
“This may seem negligible to the state’s wealthy and middle class, but not to a poor family with a breadwinner struggling at the margins. The method chosen is deporable – cutting the state share of the earned-income tax credit for low-income workers, a federal program widely praised as an effective life from poverty. “It’s one […]
OKlahoma Watch: Budget Crisis Clips Credit For Working Poor
May 23, 2016
“A data analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy shows that the measure would eliminate Oklahoma’s credit for about 130,000 households, reduce its benefits for about 70,000 and leave it untouched for another 130,000.” Read more
Oklahoma News on 6: Oklahoma Budget Crisis Clips Credit For Working Poor
May 23, 2016
“A data analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy shows that the measure would eliminate Oklahoma’s credit for about 130,000 households, reduce its benefits for about 70,000 and leave it untouched for another 130,000.” Read more
The Oklahoman: Plan to raise Oklahoma’s sales tax has supporters, detractors
May 23, 2016
“Some critics of raising the sales tax say it hits low-income families the hardest while others argue the debate should not be framed as low versus high-income residents. “Low income families have to spend most or all of what they earn to make ends meet and what they are spending is subject to sales tax,” […]
Tulsa World: Tax credit for working poor targeted by Oklahoma legislators
May 23, 2016
““It’s one of the most valuable antipoverty programs on the books today,” said Carl Davis, research director of the Institute on Economic Policy and Taxation. “This is very much a tax credit designed to benefit working families.”” Read more
Oklahoma Policy Institute: New bill would devastate a key tax credit for Oklahoma working families
May 13, 2016
“Yesterday, a letter signed by more than 150 Oklahoma clergy was delivered to lawmakers and Governor Fallin, urging them not to slash key tax credits for working families to fix the state’s revenue problems. They were joined by numerous non-profit and foundation leaders who spoke out against cuts to the Earned Income Tax Credit, Child/Child […]
Enid News: New budget plans would go after low-income parents
May 5, 2016
“A plan being discussed by Legislative leaders would eliminate the Child Tax Credit and reduce by one-fourth the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Sales Tax Relief Credit. This would shift taxes onto those families who were largely left out of Oklahoma’s income tax cuts, and it would have the worst impact on families raising […]
Norman Transcript: Not overtaxed
May 3, 2016
“In a study recently conducted by a respected Washington think tank, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, income tax cuts over the past decade in Oklahoma reduced this year’s revenue by about $1 billion dollars.” Read more
Oklahoma Policy Institute: High-income surcharge would help solve budget emergency
April 15, 2016
“The evidence is now undeniable that Oklahoma is facing a full-fledged emergency. With each passing day, the toll of budget cuts on Oklahoma families, schools, businesses, and communities becomes more alarming. Given the enormity of the budget shortfall, it’s widely understood that the budget can’t be balanced primarily through deeper spending cuts. The income tax […]
The Oklahoman: Oklahoma budget work is ongoing, lawmaker says
March 30, 2016
“Meantime, if the Legislature doesn’t find a source for new revenue, voters may get a chance to do so themselves. A measure to increase the state sales tax rate by one penny to better fund education is likely to be on the November ballot. The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy estimates those making […]
American Press: Where did Louisiana go wrong?
March 18, 2016
“Semuels talked with Carl Davis, the research director of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. She said Davis told her state legislatures are making decisions about taxation that “don’t jive with the 21st-century economy.” Illinois is one of eight states with a flat income-tax rate. It was 5 percent, but was lowered to 3.75 […]
High Plains Public Radio: The National Economy is Strong. So Why Are Some States Languishing?
March 18, 2016
“Carl Davis, the research director of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, says these states are pushing Reagan-era supply-side economics. They slash taxes in hopes of spurring growth. Oklahoma, for example, has given up on $1 billion dollars from wealthy taxpayers.” Read more
Undocumented Immigrants’ State & Local Tax Contributions (2016)
February 24, 2016 • By Lisa Christensen Gee, Meg Wiehe
This report was updated in March 2017 Read as a PDF. (Includes Full Appendix of State-by-State Data) Report Landing Page Public debates over federal immigration reform often suffer from insufficient and inaccurate information about the tax contributions of undocumented immigrants particularly at the state level. The truth is that undocumented immigrants living in the United […]
Tulsa World: Julie DelCour: Measuring Up: ‘DOTs’ hope for a ‘Road to Damascus’ moment
February 22, 2016
“Last year, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy reported that 20 states have gone a decade or more without an increase in their gasoline tax rate; 15 states had gone two decades or more. And five states, including Oklahoma, had not seen an increase in their gasoline tax rate since the 1980s or earlier. […]
Tahlequah Daily Press: Penny sales tax a bad idea
February 10, 2016
“The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy did an analysis of Oklahoma’s tax system, showing an average low-income family spends about 10 percent of its budget on state and local taxes, compared with about 4 percent for high-income families. This is shifting more and more of the burden of funding government to those who can […]
Many states' transportation budgets are in disarray, in part because they are trying to cover the rising cost of asphalt, machinery, and other construction materials with a gasoline tax rate that is rarely increased. A growing number of states have recognized the problem with this approach and have switched to a "variable-rate" gas tax under which the tax rate tends to rise over time alongside either inflation or gas prices. A majority of Americans live in a state where the gas tax is automatically adjusted in this way.
Oklahoma Watch: Study Finds a Decade of Income Tax Cuts Deprived State of $1B This Year
January 12, 2016
“Income tax cuts approved by governors and legislators of both parties over the past decade reduced this year’s state revenue collections by more than $1 billion, according to an independent data analysis. The calculation by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy in Washington suggests that past income tax cuts contributed significantly to the state’s […]
Oklahoma Policy Institute: The Cost of Tax Cuts in Oklahoma
January 12, 2016
“Due to these cuts, Oklahoma’s top income tax rate has been slashed by almost a fourth, from 6.65 percent before 2004 to 5 percent beginning in 2016. The annual revenue loss from these cuts has now reached $1.022 billion, according to an analysis prepared for OK Policy by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. […]
Mcalester News Capital: Sales tax plan reflects shift in Okla. tax base
November 2, 2015
“If voters approved the measure, it would restore the education funds that have been lost over the last decade. Analysts acknowledged that might be the only practical way to address Oklahoma’s educational woes, but was not necessarily good tax policy. “Oklahoma has a regressive tax system, and the sales tax is a big part of […]
Oklahoma Watch: Boren’s sales tax plan reflects shift in Oklahoma tax base
October 26, 2015
“If voters approved the measure, it would restore the education funds that have been lost over the last decade. Analysts acknowledged that might be the only practical way to address Oklahoma’s educational woes, but was not necessarily good tax policy.“Oklahoma has a regressive tax system, and the sales tax is a big part of that,” […]
Oklahoma Watch: Boren Sales Tax Plan Reflects Shift in Oklahoma Tax Base
October 23, 2015
“If voters approved the measure, it would restore the education funds that have been lost over the last decade. Analysts acknowledged that might be the only practical way to address Oklahoma’s educational woes, but was not necessarily good tax policy. “Oklahoma has a regressive tax system, and the sales tax is a big part of […]
The Lawton Constitution: Penny Tax For Schools Would Be Major Shift
October 23, 2015
“If voters approved the measure, it would restore the education funds that have been lost over the last decade. Analysts acknowledged that might be the only practical way to address Oklahoma’s educational woes, but was not necessarily good tax policy. “Oklahoma has a regressive tax system, and the sales tax is a big part of […]
Enid News & Eagle: Boren sales tax plan reflects shift in tax base
October 21, 2015
““Oklahoma has a regressive tax system, and the sales tax is a big part of that,” said Carl Davis, research director for the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy in Washington, a nongovernment research group.” Read more
