Tag Archives: Jersey

This is a simple blog post from Michael Tomasky with the newspaper Gaurdian UK that shows which states in America pay the highest taxes.   There are a lot more things to consider other than taxes.

For Example,  here in California we taxes that are called “fees” and “assessments” that add an additional three to four percent of our income to that tax.

We all know that these are simply more taxes,  but the idiots up in Sacramento know that people are stupid,  and they have a much easier time swallowing fees and assessments over taxes.   JD

In the spirit of my post from a while back about the importance of information versus news, and after reading the comment thread on the last post where a couple of you are griping about California taxes, I offer this post.

Our topic: Actual tax rates of states. See this chart from the Tax Foundation. Interesting findings:

*California ranks sixth, with people paying an average of 10.5% on an average per capita income of $47,706 (in 2008).

*New Jersey is numero uno, 11.8% on $56,116.

*New York is second, 11.7% on $55,032.

*My adopted state of Maryland (by the way, Brits: MARE-uh-lund, not MERRY-land, ok?) checks in at a proud number four, 10.8% on $52,709.

*Massachusetts has a bad and unearned rep: it ranks 23rd, with 9.5% on $56,661.

Now, sure enough, tax rates tend to be lower in the south, but you have to look at incomes too. So in Mississippi, people pay just 8.9%, but on an average per capita income of only $31,836. Likewise Alabama; just 8.6% but on income of $36,372.

The national average, by the way: 9.7% on $44,254.

So, unsurprisingly, it’s a trade-off, just like everything else in life. You wanna pay lower taxes, then go move to a state where you’re also likely to earn much lower wages — and a state that offers fewer opportunities, less innovation, has fewer Starbuckses, et cetera.

Heaven for people like, say, Dick Cheney, who want to be left alone but still make a lot more money than average? Well, duh: Wyoming, where it’s 7% on $53,163. But Wyoming (especially non-Jackson Hole Wyoming) is of interest to a tiny proportion of the US population. There are reasons more of us like the coasts. I’ll stick with MARE-uh-lund.