October 17, 2018

Utah: Who Pays? 6th Edition


UTAH

Read as PDF



UTAH STATE AND LOCAL TAXES

Taxes as Share of Family Income

Top 20%
Income Group Lowest
20%		 Second
20%		 Middle
20%		 Fourth
20%		 Next
15%		 Next
4%		 Top
1%
Income Range Less than
$22,900		 $22,900 to
$39,600		 $39,600 to
$63,900		 $63,900 to
$104,300		 $104,300 to
$202,400		 $202,400 to
$486,500		 over
$486,500
Average Income $14,100 $32,500 $50,600 $80,800 $139,400 $288,400 $1,300,500
Sales & Excise Taxes 5.1% 4.5% 3.6% 3.0% 2.2% 1.4% 0.7%
General Sales – Individuals 2.6% 2.5% 2.0% 1.7% 1.3% 0.9% 0.4%
Other Sales & Excise – Ind. 1.0% 0.8% 0.5% 0.4% 0.3% 0.1% 0.0%
Sales & Excise on Business 1.5% 1.3% 1.1% 0.9% 0.6% 0.4% 0.2%
Property Taxes 2.1% 1.4% 1.7% 2.0% 1.6% 1.7% 1.5%
Home, Rent, Car – Ind. 2.1% 1.4% 1.7% 1.9% 1.5% 1.3% 0.4%
Other Property Taxes 0.0% 0.0% 0.1% 0.1% 0.1% 0.4% 1.1%
Income Taxes 0.3% 2.0% 2.9% 3.8% 4.1% 4.2% 4.5%
Personal Income Tax 0.3% 2.0% 2.8% 3.8% 4.0% 4.2% 4.4%
Corporate Income Tax 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.1% 0.1%
TOTAL TAXES 7.5% 7.9% 8.2% 8.8% 7.9% 7.3% 6.7%

Individual figures may not sum to totals due to rounding. Download the table

TAX FEATURES DRIVING THE DATA in Utah

Progressive Features

Regressive Features
  • Provides targeted credit based on federal standard or itemized deductions to low- and middle-income filers
  • Requires the use of combined reporting for the corporate income tax
  • Personal income tax uses a flat rate
  • Fails to provide refundable income tax credits to offset sales, excise, and property taxes
  • State sales tax base includes groceries, though taxed at a lower rate
  • Local sales tax bases include groceries
  • Does not levy a tax on estates or inheritances

ITEP Tax Inequality Index

According to ITEP’s Tax Inequality Index, which measures the impact of each state’s tax system on income inequality, Utah has the 40th most unfair state and local tax system in the country. Incomes are more unequal in Utah after state and local taxes are collected than before. (See Appendix B for state-by-state rankings and the methodology section for additional detail on the index.)

Note: Figures show permanent law in Utah enacted through September 10, 2018, at 2015 income levels. Top figure represents total state and local taxes as a share of non-elderly income. The sixth edition of Who Pays does not include the impact of the federal deduction for state and local taxes (SALT) because policy changes in the 2017 federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act temporarily limited the extent to which the SALT deduction functions as a generalized offset of state and local taxes.