Pennsylvania

Anti-tax interests finally found the end of the tax cutting appetite in a few states this week...

With many state legislatures now in full swing with activity heating up, some tax cut proposals have lost steam...

While we were hoping to get progressive tax policy wins for Valentine’s Day, many state lawmakers have another idea in mind...

Historic and ongoing discrimination have created stark racial disparities in the US, and the racial retirement wealth gap is one such example.

Updated July 15, 2024 In 2024, state lawmakers have a choice: advance tax policy that improves equity and helps communities thrive, or push tax policies that disproportionately benefit the wealthy, drain funding for critical public services, and make it harder for low-income and working families to get ahead. Despite worsening state fiscal conditions, we expect […]

The findings of Who Pays? go a long way toward explaining why so many states are failing to raise the amount of revenue needed to provide full and robust support for our public schools.

The nation’s capital has a once-in-a-decade opportunity to advance a stronger and fairer local tax code. New draft recommendations from a key advisory panel will help leaders make the most of the moment.

The vast majority of state and local tax systems are upside-down, with the wealthy paying a far lesser share of their income in taxes than low- and middle-income families. Yet a few states have made strides to buck that trend and have tax codes that are somewhat progressive and therefore do not worsen inequality.

The vast majority of state and local tax systems are upside-down, with the wealthy paying a far lesser share of their income in taxes than low- and middle-income families. That’s according to the latest edition of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy’s Who Pays?, the only distributional analysis of tax systems in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Pennsylvania Download PDF All figures and charts show 2024 tax law in Pennsylvania, presented at 2023 income levels. Senior taxpayers are excluded for reasons detailed in the methodology. Our analysis includes nearly all (99.6 percent) state and local tax revenue collected in Pennsylvania. State and local tax shares of family income Top 20% Income Group […]

The year may be new, but state lawmakers seem to have the same old resolution: slashing state income taxes...

Over time, broad wealth taxes were whittled away to become the narrower property taxes we have today. These selective wealth taxes apply to the kinds of wealth that make up a large share of middle-class families’ net worth (like homes and cars), but usually exempt most of the net worth of the wealthy (like business equity, bonds, and pooled investment funds).The rationale for this pared-back approach to wealth taxation has grown weaker in recent decades as inequality has worsened, the share of wealth held outside of real estate has increased, and the tools needed to administer a broad wealth tax…

Leading localities are using refundable EITCs to boost incomes and reduce taxes for workers and families with low and moderate incomes. These local credits build on the success of EITCs at the federal and state levels, reduce economic hardship and improve the fairness of the tax code.

It may be the off-season for state legislatures, but tax policy changes could soon emerge from the ballot box or the courts. Advocates in Arkansas want voters to decide the future of taxing diapers and feminine hygiene products, and supporters of public education in Nebraska are working to make sure voters have a say on the state’s school choice tax credit. Meanwhile, cannabis firms in Missouri are suing the state over cities and counties stacking sales tax on marijuana.

August is here, school is starting, and with that comes back to school shopping...

Summer is here and many states nearing the end of their legislative sessions. Temperatures are rising in more ways than one in some state legislatures while others seem to be cooling off.

As the sweet days of summer pass, the scent of jasmine isn't the only thing blowing through the minds of state lawmakers, as tax policy discussions remain at the forefront...

Across the country, the marathon budget season has held pace, with a steady stream of bills continuing to cross the finish line...

Short-sighted tax cuts continue to make their way to Governors’ desks this week. In Florida, Gov. DeSantis signed a $1.3 billion tax cut package with $550 million of the tax cuts from sales tax holidays, alone. The Nebraska legislature also sent $6.4 billion in tax cuts to Gov. Pillen’s desk which includes an enormous personal income tax cut that will reduce taxes on the top 1 percent by tens of thousands of dollars.

Many state legislatures this year have been considering property tax cuts – but too many are ignoring the solution that speaks more directly to questions of property tax affordability than any other policy option: the “circuit breaker."

Concerns over property tax affordability have been at the forefront this year as housing prices have climbed and property tax bills have often increased along with them. As lawmakers mull a range of property tax cuts, circuit breakers are the best possible approach—and these policies are receiving far too little attention in the states.