Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP)

Oklahoma

Public Radio Tulsa: Oklahoma Tax System Called “Unfair”

January 15, 2015

“Results from a new study claim Oklahoma’s tax system is unfair to the great majority of its’ citizens. The report, from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, finds low and middle-income Oklahomans pay over two times more in taxes as a percentage of income than the wealthiest residents. Gene Perry is with the Oklahoma […]

KFOR: State Leaders Approve Tax Breaks for Wealthiest Oklahomans

December 22, 2014

According to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, the tax breaks would equal out to $9 for those who make between $19,500 and $36,400. It would also give $30 back to individuals making between $36,400 and $58,100. An additional $81 would go in the pockets of those who make between $58,100 and $97,700. Read […]

The Motley Fool: The 5 States with the Highest Sales Tax

August 20, 2014

By Jeremy Bowman: Nearly every state in the union charges a sales tax, and the tax levied on goods and services sold at the retail level is just one of many tools states use to collect revenue, along with licensing and taxes on income, corporations, and property. Sales taxes tend to attract less attention than […]

Associated Press: Oklahoma Tax Holiday Is Little Relief

August 1, 2014

By Tim Tally Figures provided by the commission indicate that in 2008, the first year the sales tax holiday was in effect, shoppers saved $6.4 million in sales taxes on clothing and footwear. Last year, shoppers saved more than $7.2 million, and this year the commission estimates shoppers will save almost $7.3 million in sales […]

Oklahoma Policy Institute: 5 things you should know about Oklahoma taxes

April 15, 2014

It’s tax day — the annual event when procrastinators, or those who just like to live on the edge, rush to get their tax returns filed before the midnight deadline. If your return is safely filed, or if you just want another excuse to procrastinate, here are 5 things in 5 charts that everyone should […]

Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier: Gas tax

April 2, 2014

(Original Post) A new fact sheet from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy indicates Iowa is one of seven states where the gas tax rates are “stuck in neutral.” According to the institute’s analysis, 21 states have gone a decade or more without increasing their gas tax rates and 16 states have gone two […]

Globe Gazette: Iowa’s Among Gas Tax Rates Stuck in Neutral

April 2, 2014

(Original Post) A new fact sheet from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy indicates Iowa is one of seven states where the gas tax rates are “stuck in neutral.” According to the institute’s analysis, 21 states have gone a decade or more without increasing their gas tax rates and 16 states have gone two […]

The Tulsa World: OU leader slams funding cuts

February 18, 2014

(Original Post) President Boren says constant reductions are harming higher education in the state. BY KIM ARCHER World Staff Writer | 0 comments University of Oklahoma President David Boren is decrying the governor’s proposal to again cut higher education funding and is urging Oklahoma residents to raise their voices to stop further reductions. He became […]

Oklahoma Policy Institute: Tax cut will provide little benefit to most Oklahomans

February 18, 2014

The average Oklahoman would get just $29 from Governor Mary Fallin’s proposed income tax cut, while one-quarter of the total benefit would go to the wealthiest 1 percent of households, according to a new analysis prepared by the Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP). Read the Full Report

Tax Analysts: Short on Revenue, State and Local Governments Turn to Nonprofits

February 3, 2014

  And in North Carolina, lawmakers and leaders of nonprofits fought a bitter battle last year over exemptions for nonprofits. Ultimately, HB 998 capped nonprofits’ sales tax refunds at $45 million and required them to begin collecting sales and use taxes on admission charges to entertainment activities. Their property, income, and payroll tax exemptions were […]

USA Today: Why Christie should endorse tuition equity

December 2, 2013

(Original Post) Raul Reyes, USATODAY 7:12 p.m. EST November 26, 2013 If he signs bill, undocumented high school grads would be able to pay in-state tuition. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is a lawmaker who plays by his own rules. The iconoclastic Republican was not afraid to buck his party by standing with Democratic President […]

Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota County’s growth report, the KKK and Stephen Colbert

November 21, 2013

(Original Post)  By Tom Lyons Published: Wednesday, November 20, 2013 at 5:08 p.m. Last Modified: Wednesday, November 20, 2013 at 5:08 p.m. Ironic is the kindest description I can think of for the way Sarasota County Commissioner Joe Barbetta is blaming Randall Reid for a consultant’s report all agree was an embarrassing waste of time […]

Politico: Arthur Laffer is back as GOP tax man

October 15, 2013

  By RACHAEL BADE | 10/14/13 11:03 PM EDT Four decades ago at the Washington Hotel, a quirky economist made a pitch on the back of a napkin to Ford administration officials Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld: Cutting taxes would create an economic boom. Back then, many Republicans opposed tax cuts, but that famous “Laffer […]

Portsmouth Daily Time: To the Ohio House of Representatives, Tax Reform Study Committee

August 21, 2013

A study by the Joint Economic Committee of the Congress found in the 1970s that state taxes were one of the least driving factors in business location decisions, in part because state taxes could be written off on Federal taxes. Quality of life factors were seen as far more important. The Tax Foundation, set up in the 1930s to combat rising taxes under the New Deal, estimated in a 2006 study of businesses in North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific that taxes accounted for 7 to 13 percent of business cost in manufacturing, and just 3 to 7 percent in…

PBS: State Tax Cuts: Is Arthur Laffer All Wet?

August 2, 2013

The correlation between states having no income tax and their economic growth is not as direct as Reagan White House economic adviser Arthur Laffer says it is, argues tax economist Joel Slemrod.

PBS: How Low Can They Go? Arthur Laffer Defends Slashing State Income Taxes

August 1, 2013

In this 2012 Making Sen$e report, former Reagan White House economic adviser Arthur Laffer drew his famous curve on a napkin -- just the way he did for the Ford administration -- and explained how it works.

The City Wire: Some studies note impact of tax holiday promote spending

August 1, 2013

One back-to-school ritual designed to boost consumption will occur this weekend starting Saturday (Aug. 3) and ending Sunday (Aug. 4), as consumers may take advantage of a statewide tax-free holiday.

McClatchy-Tribune: States expand sales tax holidays beyond back-to-school items

July 22, 2013

  Many states with back-to-school sales tax “holidays” are expanding them to cover almost any purchase, in addition to the usual kids’ clothing, shoes, books and school supplies. As schools and students replace ink and paper with pixels, some states are expanding their holidays to cover sales taxes on low-cost computers and tablets. These electronics […]

Stateline: States Expand Sales Tax Holidays Beyond Back-to-School Items

July 10, 2013

(Original Post)   By Elaine S. Povich, Staff Writer A crowd of about 100 line up outside of the Apple Store in the Saddle Creek shopping center in Germantown, Tenn., to get a head start on last year’s tax free weekend. (AP) Many states with back-to-school sales tax “holidays” are expanding them to cover almost […]

Gulf Coast News Today: We are conservative, Republican, religious

July 8, 2013

  Steve Flowers Inside the Statehouse A recent survey rated Alabama as the most conservative state in the Union. More than half of our residents describe themselves as politically conservative. The poll was done by the vaunted Princeton, New Jersey Gallup polling firm. Four of our sister states, Mississippi, South Carolina, Louisiana and Arkansas, also […]

The Commonwealth Institute: What Would a Cut to the Top Individual Income Tax Rate Mean for Virginians?

May 17, 2013

A proposal to eliminate Virginia’s top individual income tax rate would overwhelmingly benefit the state’s wealthiest residents, who already spend far less of their household budgets on state and local taxes than any other group. Nearly 40 percent of Virginia taxpayers would see no reduction in their taxes under the plan and most of the […]

Pryor Creek Times: Income tax reduction done deal

May 16, 2013

(Original Post) The plan to reduce Oklahoma’s income tax from 5.25 percent to 5.00 beginning in 2015 is a done deal. We know it means losing $200 million from state revenues that could have gone to hire more teachers and properly fund public safety so that we have enough troopers on the road and ensure […]

Chattanooga Times Free Press: Some lawmakers say they may kill Georgia’s income tax next year, but there would be a cost

May 6, 2013

(Original Post) published Sunday, May 5th, 2013 by Tim Omarzu A group of Republican lawmakers in Atlanta wants to do away with Georgia’s 6 percent income tax and replace it — mainly by increasing taxes on sales and services. State Rep. Tom Kirby, R-Loganville, set the stage for what could be a sweeping change to […]

Oklahoma Policy Institute: Speak out against irresponsible tax cuts

April 26, 2013

An income tax cut deal has been reached between Governor Fallin and Legislative leadership. The proposal is moving through the Legislature as HB 2032. This fact sheet explains what’s in the latest deal and how it will affect Oklahomans. Read the Full Report

The Motley Fool: The 7 States With the Lowest Gasoline Taxes

April 22, 2013

(Original Post) The price of gasoline is constantly on people’s minds. The prices you see on those gas-station signs everywhere you drive are tough enough to swallow, but what you may not know is the extent to which gas taxes contribute to those prices. The federal tax is $0.184 per gallon, and states add their […]