state taxes

Lessons From The 2021 Child Tax Credit Expansion Informing State Policy Debates

It’s been two years since the expiration of the expanded child tax credit (CTC), a temporary provision of the American Rescue Plan that effectively provided...

September 12, 2023Joseph Broadus Nikhita Airi

State and Local Issues: TaxVox

State Rainy Day Fund Balances Reached All-Time Highs Last Year

As states navigate an uncertain fiscal future , a lot of budget commentators will justifiably note that nearly every state cut taxes during the last few revenue boom years. But most states also stocked a lot of money into their savings accounts over the past three years – and this may help them weather forthcoming budget storms.

September 6, 2023Aravind Boddupalli

State and Local Issues: TaxVox

State Tax Cuts Can Be a Post-Pandemic Success Story—If They Fit the Moment

A few weeks into their 2022 legislative sessions, the question in most state capitols across the country—from Connecticut to Utah —is not whether to cut...

February 9, 2022Richard C. Auxier

Federal Budget and Economy: TaxVox

Why Progressivity in Tax Policy Is Not A Simple Matter

Policymakers and even policy analysts often consider the progressivity of specific proposals independently from the broader systems in which they operate. Consequently, they often leave...

October 20, 2021C. Eugene Steuerle

State and Local Issues: TaxVox

Why Do States Tax Illegal Drugs?

Say you came into possession of some illegal drugs. What’s your next move? According to some states, you should immediately pay the state’s tax on...

November 18, 2020Nikhita Airi Aravind Boddupalli

: TaxVox

Three Tax Lessons from the First Year of Widespread Legal Sports Betting

Three Tax Lessons from the First Year of Widespread Legal Sports Betting A year ago, the Supreme Court legalized one of America’s favorite illegal pastimes:...

May 22, 2019Richard C. Auxier

Individual Taxes: TaxVox

Do High State Taxes Drive Away Millionaires? Not Really

Liberals and conservatives have been arguing for years over whether high taxes drive away those with high-incomes. Do millionaires flee from high-tax states to low-tax jurisdictions, as tax-cutting lawmakers claim? Now, in the most extensive look at the question to date, a group of researchers from

May 26, 2016Howard Gleckman

State and Local Issues: TaxVox

States Want To Cut Taxes Even More on Pensions. Bad Ideas Never Die.

The siren song of retirement income free of state taxes continues to seduce politicians. No matter that there is little evidence that high taxes on pension income drive away seniors, or that few older people move from one state to another for any reason at all. No matter that tax-free retirement

March 4, 2015Howard Gleckman

Federal Budget and Economy: TaxVox

Nine Tax Stories to Watch in 2015

So much has changed. Yet, when it comes to taxes, so much has not. Republicans have taken control of Congress and now hold governorships in 31 states. The U.S. economy is finally on solid ground. And presidential hopefuls are gearing up for the 2016 election. But for all that, the top tax stories

January 6, 2015Howard Gleckman

State and Local Issues: TaxVox

Did Tax Hikes Doom Governors? Did Tax Cuts Elect Them?

At first glance, the message was pretty clear: If you were a governor who cut taxes, you probably got reelected on Tuesday. If you were a governor who raised taxes (or even a candidate who worked for one) you probably lost. It was true in deep red states like Kansas where, against all odds, Sam

November 6, 2014Howard Gleckman