Alabama
Decatur Daily: BP Settlement Doesn’t Change Need for Tax Reform
July 13, 2015
The fiscal 2016 budget shortfall has been inevitable since at least fiscal 2010. Rational tax reform would not increase taxes for most Alabamians. Low- and middle-income Alabamians pay more than twice as much of their income in overall state and local taxes as do those with the highest incomes, according to a study by the […]
Decatur Daily: Concerns raised about flat-tax bill; hearing today
May 1, 2015
Forrister said his group asked the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a liberal non-profit, to examine Hightower’s proposal. “They found that the only income group that would pay more on average would be the bottom 20 percent, those making less than $18,000,” Forrister said. By contrast, the state’s highest earners — the top 1 […]
AL.com: Sen. Bernie Sanders, the latest presidential hopeful, issues dire warning to Alabama
May 1, 2015
“I’m sharing this data with you in the hope you can work with your Congressional delegation and other leaders in your state on behalf of a budget that works for all Americans,” Sanders wrote. The data came from the White House Office of Management and Budget, the Economic Policy Institute and the Institute on Taxation […]
Arise Citizens’ Policy Project: Study on Alabama’s tax system: The less you make, the bigger share you pay
January 16, 2015
Low- and middle-income Alabamians pay more than twice as much in taxes as a share of their income compared to the state’s wealthiest residents, according to a study released Wednesday by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), a nonprofit research organization based in Washington, D.C. The study, Who Pays?, analyzes tax systems in […]
The Birmingham News: Alabama taxes poor more heavily than rich, study finds
January 16, 2015
“Poor Alabamians continue to pay a larger share of their income in state and local taxes than upper-income earners, but the state no longer is among the “Terrible Ten,” according to a report released Wednesday. The fifth edition of “Who Pays?” by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy pegs Alabama as the 12th most […]
The Times Daily: The Solution to Prison Woes Lies in the Tax Code
June 19, 2014
A study by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy of state taxes found that the share of state and local taxes paid by Alabamians based on income is considerably higher for those earning in the lowest 20 percent (10.2 percent) and the second lowest 20 percent (10.4 percent). By comparison, the top 1 percent of income earners paid only 3.8 percent of their income in state and local taxes.
Times Daily: The root of the problem is in code
June 13, 2014
Posted: Thursday, June 12, 2014 10:00 pm Additional money will be needed to solve the prison problems. Other state services have suffered budget cuts, as well, because not enough tax dollars are available under Alabama’s antiquated and inequitable tax code. That can be changed. Officials are fond of touting the state’s low taxes as an […]
Montgomery Advertiser: While we wait, cost of immigration reform rises
November 6, 2013
Nov. 5, 2013 5:26 PM There are few states in the nation with as big a stake in immigration reform as Alabama. Immigrants make up a growing percent of Alabama’s population, and 4.6 percent of all business owners in Alabama are foreign-born. The state has everything to gain from a smoothly functioning immigration system, […]
The Birmingham News: Don’t sell short the contributions, in culture and in taxes, that immigrants make in the U.S., Alabama
July 31, 2013
(Original Post) By Joey Kennedy on July 29, 2013 at 9:39 AM, updated July 29, 2013 at 11:54 AM Comprehensive immigration reform appears bogged down in the U.S. House. Imagine that — the one branch of government controlled by far-right, tea-party politicians can’t (won’t) get anything done. Still, the hope is that some how, some […]
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 Birmingham News: The tax you pay for what you use every day
June 18, 2013
(Original Post) By Mike D. Smith on June 14, 2013 at 4:49 PM, updated June 15, 2013 at 11:08 PM I know I can tell you to the cent what I gave Alabama Power last month. Same goes for my cellphone bill, car note and my apartment complex. All that really matters when we’re direct-depositing […]
Alabama 13: Taxing the Dinner Table
May 10, 2013
Posted: May 09, 2013 6:25 PM EDT Updated: May 09, 2013 11:10 PM EDT By Jon Paepcke BIRMINGHAM, AL – With every bar code swipe, the numbers add up in Alabama. Did you know that for every dollar you spend on groceries four cents goes to the state? It’s true. Did you also know we […]
Anniston (AL) Star: Alabama makes the ‘Terrible Ten’ because we are not fair Read more: Anniston Star – Alabama makes the ‘Terrible Ten’ because we are not fair
February 4, 2013
by The Anniston Star Editorial Board Feb 04, 2013 A nonpartisan research organization in Washington, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, says Alabama’s system of taxation was placed on its list of states with the most regressive tax systems. Why are we not surprised? For years, tax experts have told the state’s legislative leaders […]
Birmingham Business Journal: Alabama tax system lands in ‘terrible 10’
January 31, 2013
(Original Post) Jan 31, 2013, 2:21pm CST Staff Birmingham Business Journal Alabama has one of the nation’s 10 most regressive tax systems, according to a new report from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. The institute claims the lack of a graduated personal income tax and a reliance on sales and consumption taxes has […]
Montgomery Advertiser: Alabama’s tax system among most regressive in nation, says report
January 30, 2013
State not alone: ‘Virtually every state’s tax system is fundamentally unfair’ Written by Brian Lyman Jan. 30, 2013 11:17 AM, | Alabama’s tax system ranks as one of the ten most regressive in the country, according to a report issued Wednesday by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a non-partisan think tank based in […]
Alabama Arise: The 2009 Tax Fairness Amendment: Answers to Some Common Questions
January 14, 2013
Answers to some frequently asked questions about the 2009 Tax Fairness Amendment. Read the Full Report (PDF)
Alabama Arise: The State of Working Alabama 2009
January 14, 2013
For many Alabamians, a decade of relative economic prosperity has been a decade of lost potential, bringing little in the way of increased earnings or economic stability. Now, with the nation striving to emerge from a severe recession, the main question on the minds of many of the state’s workers is a simple one: How […]
Montgomery Advertiser: James Evans: System perpetuates poverty
December 21, 2012
(PDF of Original Post) There is a constant refrain in the faith tradition shared by Jews and Christians. It begins with the Law of Moses, flows through the prophets, and finds perfect expression in the teaching of Jesus. This refrain is God’s concern for the poor. People of faith who take the Scriptures seriously are […]
The Birmingham News: Our View: Most Alabamians don’t get to celebrate having the nation’s lowest state and local taxes
December 21, 2012
(PDF of Original Post) By Birmingham News editorial boardNovember 08, 2009, 6:00AM Imagine that Nick Saban’s Alabama Crimson Tide wins the national championship this year, but only the special-team players — and not the majority of the team — get to celebrate. If you can imagine that, you get a better sense of what it […]
The Birmingham News: Our View: The time is right for the Legislature to grant sales tax relief to Alabama families struggling to make ends meet
December 21, 2012
(PDF of Original Post) By Birmingham News editorial boardFebruary 10, 2010, 5:30AM When the nation’s economy catches a cold, Alabama gets pneumonia, the saying goes. And when the nation’s economy catches pneumonia, as it has during the Great Recession? Let’s just say Alabama’s economy is gravely ill and struggling. In recent months, the state’s unemployment […]
The Birmingham News: Our View: Lawmakers should make Alabama’s tax system more fair and do away with the 4 percent state sales tax on food
December 21, 2012
(PDF of Original Post) By Birmingham News editorial board March 31, 2010, 5:45AM How does two weeks’ worth of free groceries sound? That’s what the great majority of Alabamians stand to gain if the Legislature removes the state’s 4 percent sales tax from food and over-the-counter drugs. Alabama Arise, a group that lobbies for the […]
The Birmingham News: Our View: The state House of Representatives should approve a bill ending the state’s 4 percent sales tax on groceries and nonprescription drugs
December 21, 2012
(PDF of Original Post) By Birmingham News editorial board April 08, 2010, 5:45AM When the Alabama House of Representatives debates a bill today that would remove the state sales tax on groceries, you can bet opponents utter these words, or some variation, more than once: “The whole bill is a redistribution of wealth.” (In fact, […]
The Birmingham News: Our View: The nation’s lowest-tax state reaps the nation’s highest amount from its poorest taxpayers
December 21, 2012
(PDF of Original Post) Alabama stands atop two national rankings. Auburn fans should be upset. But so should fans of the Crimson Tide. Obviously, we’re not talking BCS and AP pre-season college football rankings. Instead, we’re talking about two seemingly contradictory rankings of the state’s tax system that expose just how screwy it is. Alabamians […]
Montgomery Advertiser: Editorial: Are state’s taxes low? Not for all
December 21, 2012
(PDF of Original Post) August 15, 2010 Which statement is true? 1. Compared to the rest of the nation, Alabamians pay a low rate of state and local taxes. 2. Compared to the rest of the nation, Alabamians pay a high rate of state and local taxes. Actually, both statements can be true, or they […]
Birmingham News: OUR VIEW: It’s awful that Birmingham is tied for the highest sales tax rate in the nation among cities with more than 200,000 people
December 21, 2012
(PDF of Original Post) Published: Wednesday, May 25, 2011, 5:45 AM By Birmingham News editorial board If it’s possible to be No. 1 with a bullet, Birmingham is. It sits tied with Montgomery atop the charts. But it’s nothing you’d want to dance to. Birmingham and Montgomery have the highest general sales tax rate in […]
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