Are Taxes Really Lower in California than in Texas?

Marc JoffeWalletHub recently publishedan analysis of tax burdens by state that included some surprising findings: most notably, that Texas state and local governments impose heavier taxes on median earners than their California counterparts. Of the fifty states plus DC, the Golden State had the 12th lightest tax burden, while Texas ranked 41st.The counterintuitive conclusion that California is a  relatively low tax state caught the attention of State Senator Scott Wiener (D‑San Francisco)trumpetedthe results on his Twitter page.The narrative CA — now the world’s 4th largest economy — is imploding has never been true.They said everyone here was moving to FL. Turns out for every 6 Californians moving to FL, 5 Floridians moved to CA.They said TX had lower taxes than CA. Turns out that ’s false as well.pic.twitter.com/HQPZFmHKdx— Senator Scott Wiener (@Scott_Wiener)March 24, 2023But the WalletHub analysis seems to contradict a  Tax Foundation burden ranking which placed the Golden State and Lone Star State 46th and 6th respectively.The difference between WalletHub and the Tax Foundation is partially explained by a  different focus. The Tax Foundation is measuring overall tax burden while WalletHub is trying to estimate the impact of taxes on a median family. Since California’s personal income tax is highly progressive, with the burden falling more on high income taxpayers, it is not surprising that Wallet Hub would come to a different conclusion.But could it re...
Source: Cato-at-liberty - Category: American Health Authors: Source Type: blogs