The recent monsoons are not all that's soaking Arizonans. Arizona politicians, responsible for a 12 percent increase in state spending this year, soaked taxpayers for 17 percent more tax revenue this year than last.
Tax relief is long overdue, and Arizona's income taxes should be a prime target.
As economist Richard Vedder explains, "the income tax is the champion of bad taxes, in terms of its destructive effect on people, prosperity, and their economic well-being." That's because income taxes are levies on capital, thereby limiting peoples' ability to invest in their homes, new businesses, and the economy as a whole.
The Goldwater Institute has recommended replacing state income taxes with a small retail sales tax that would generate as much as $24 billion in personal income growth over 15 years and an additional 14,100 jobs on average each year. A second, more modest Goldwater Institute proposal would add 10,800 jobs per year and create $18 billion in personal income growth over 15 years.
Lifting the state income tax burden would help ensure a brighter economic future for Arizona. To do otherwise would leave Arizonans all wet.
Key Links:
-Study: Three Paths to Prosperity
-Tax Foundation: "State and Local Tax Burdens Compared to Other U.S. States, 1970-2005"
-Voeller: "Time Is Right For Substantial Tax Relief"
