For Immediate Release: April 15, 2010
Contact: PRI Press Office, Kelly Gorton at 415-955-6136
California Ranks Last in Combination Measure of Tax Burden and Tax Structure
San Francisco—The Pacific Research Institute (PRI), a free-market think tank based in San Francisco, found that California ranked dead last in a combined measure of the state’s tax burden and tax structure according to the newly released study, Taxifornia. It is the second study in the California Prosperity series, a PRI project to evaluate California’s economic performance relative to other states.
- California ranked 47th out of the 50 states in total burden of government—a calculation of state and local government spending as a share of the state’s GSP.
- California ranked 45th in tax structure—a measure of the structure of five major taxes – personal income tax, corporate income tax, capital-based taxes, sales taxes, and property taxes. California has the highest sales tax rate and poorest designed personal income taxes in the nation.
“California has almost systematically implemented tax policies that discourage work effort, investment, and entrepreneurship, which are all the bedrock of a prosperous society,” said Jason Clemens, PRI director of research.
“The solution to California’s economy can‘t be more government spending and higher tax rates, since these are already among the highest in the nation,” added co-author Robert Murphy, Ph.D. and PRI senior fellow in Business and Economic Studies. “Policy makers must break out of this fiscal rut through a genuine commitment to shrinking the size and scope of the state and local government.
“California must reform and modernize its tax system with an eye towards encouraging economic growth,” concluded Mr. Clemens. “This means increasing our reliance on consumption taxes while decreasing our use of costly and damaging taxes like personal and corporate income taxes. In addition, California must permanently reduce spending in order to permanently reduce the burden of government. Smaller, smarter government is the solution for California.”
Taxifornia is the second installment of a multiyear project by Jason Clemens and Robert P. Murphy, Ph.D., that aims to explain to Californians the underlying problems plaguing the economy and, more important, the solutions to these problems. The complete report may be downloaded at www.pacificresearch.org/publications/taxifornia.
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To learn more about CA Prosperity or to arrange an interview with the project directors, Robert P. Murphy Ph.D., and Jason Clemens please contact PRI’s Press Office at (415) 955-6136 or kgorton@pacificresearch.org.
About PRI
For 31 years, the Pacific Research Institute (PRI) has championed freedom, opportunity, and individual responsibility through free-market policy solutions. PRI is a non-profit, non-partisan organization. For more information please visit our web site at http://www.pacificresearch.org/
I suppose this is an attempt to balance off this http://orangejuiceblog.com/2010/04/the-working-poor-pay-most-while-corporations-skate-in-california/
Before examining how these conclusions were arrived at, I can already tell you a lot about the Pacific Research Institute, which – even though it sounds just like Jerbal’s Pacific Strategies – is affiliated with Canada’s far-right Fraser Institute. To a degree they are extremist Ayn-Rand libertarians, but to a bigger degree they are corporate whores who will figure out a way to twist facts to the liking of whoever pays them.
Past controversies – a study debunking the dangers of second-hand smoke, paid for by Philip Morris. A study debunking global warming, paid for by Exxon Mobil. Canada’s Fraser Institute has for decades put most of their effort, vainly, into destroying Canada’s very popular universal healthcare system. Perpetually frustrated in that attempt, they send “scholars” like John R Graham and Sally Pipes down to the states to make sure WE don’t get health care reform.
In the must-watch documentary “The Corporation,” the leader of the Fraser Institute emphatically and at length tries to make the case that every square inch of the Earth should be owned by an individual or corporation. That’s where they’re coming from.
Pacific Research Institute’s major funders include
# Altria
# ChevronTexaco
# Cypress Semiconductor
# Exxon Mobil Corporation
# Freedom Communications
# Microsoft
# Pfizer
# PhRMA
# AT&T
# Verizon
This latest effort is so convoluted it’s hard to explain; they needed to invent a formulation they call “Combination Measure of Tax Burden and Tax Structure” in order to cherrypick their data to the point where the 21st-taxed state becomes the first. Just to give ammo to their corporate masters when they demand even less taxation. NOT WORTHY OF OUR ATTENTION.