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Conservatives Get It Wrong
Yet Again About Oregon's Business Climate
August 11, 2011
 It seems that one of the characteristics of conservatism is a
belief in things that are not true and disbelief of things that
are true. One of the clearest examples of this phenomena is the
conservative meme that Oregon is bad for business and that
high taxes on Oregon businesses is stifling economic growth
and driving business from the state.
As we pointed out earlier,
this just
isn't true. In fact Oregon has one of most business-friendly
tax structures in the nation as documented yet again by a new
report prepared by
Ernst & Young LLP in conjunction with the
Council On State
Taxation (COST) titled "Total
state and local business taxes, State-by-state estimates for
fiscal year 2010 July 2011." This report ranks states by
total business tax as a percentage of private sector
gross state product (GSP). It turns out that Oregon has the
fifth lowest total business tax in the nation.
The Oregon Center for Public Policy
summarized the results:
A corporate-funded study says that Oregon has the fifth lowest
“total effective business tax rate” in the country, a ranking
that takes into account the tax increases put in place by
Measures 66 and 67.
The
study conducted by the accounting firm Ernst & Young on behalf
of the Council On State Taxation (COST) (PDF) said that the
total state and local taxes paid by Oregon businesses amounted
to 3.8 percent of Oregon’s private sector economy in fiscal year
2010.
Businesses in only four other states — Connecticut, Delaware,
Maryland and North Carolina — contributed a lower share in state
and local taxes relative to the size of the state’s private
sector economy, according to the COST study.
...
“Even the lobbying arm of big corporations recognizes that
Oregon has low business taxes, a fact unchanged by Measures 66
and 67,” said Chuck Sheketoff, executive director of the Oregon
Center for Public Policy. “The COST study once again documents
that there’s room for Oregon corporations to contribute more to
support the public structures from which they also benefit.”
COST releases its study annually.
OCPP noted that each report has ranked Oregon as having low
business taxes.
Here are the state rankings adapted from Table 5 of the Ernst &
Young report. As you can see, the Oregon business tax burden is
among the lowest in the nation -- far lower than the 5.0 percent
national average.
State vs. local business
taxes and business taxes as a share of private sector
GSP, by
state, FY2010
(US$billion) |
|
State |
Property
tax |
Sales tax |
Excise and
gross
receipts |
Corp.
income |
UI tax |
Individual
income tax
on business
income
|
Total
Business
Tax |
| Connecticut |
4.5 |
12.9 |
2.4 |
9.9 |
6.9 |
22.9 |
3.30% |
| Delaware |
1.7 |
2.9 |
0.4 |
0.9 |
2 |
3.7 |
3.70% |
| Maryland |
5.8 |
15.7 |
3 |
12.2 |
8.8 |
27.9 |
3.70% |
| North Carolina |
8.1 |
22.3 |
4.9 |
11.7 |
13 |
34 |
3.70% |
| Oregon |
2.6 |
8.1 |
3 |
6 |
5.6 |
14.1 |
3.80% |
| Utah |
1.7 |
5.2 |
2.1 |
3.6 |
3.7 |
8.8 |
3.90% |
| Virginia |
4.8 |
16.8 |
8.7 |
16.1 |
13.5 |
32.9 |
4.00% |
| Indiana |
4.4 |
14.3 |
5.6 |
8.9 |
10 |
23.2 |
4.10% |
| Georgia |
5.3 |
15.3 |
9.1 |
16.8 |
14.4 |
32.1 |
4.20% |
| Missouri |
3.6 |
10.3 |
5.3 |
9.8 |
8.9 |
20.1 |
4.20% |
| Arkansas |
2.9 |
7.6 |
0.8 |
1.7 |
3.7 |
9.3 |
4.30% |
| Idaho |
1.1 |
3.1 |
0.9 |
1.5 |
2 |
4.6 |
4.30% |
| Massachusetts |
7.9 |
21.6 |
6.5 |
14.1 |
14.3 |
35.7 |
4.30% |
| South Dakota |
0.7 |
1.3 |
0.8 |
1.3 |
1.5 |
2.6 |
4.30% |
| Colorado |
3.3 |
9 |
6.4 |
10.9 |
9.7 |
19.9 |
4.40% |
| Minnesota |
6.7 |
18 |
3.7 |
7.4 |
10.3 |
25.4 |
4.40% |
| New Hampshire |
1.2 |
2.2 |
1.1 |
3.2 |
2.4 |
5.4 |
4.40% |
| Tennessee |
5.6 |
11.2 |
4.2 |
8.3 |
9.8 |
19.5 |
4.50% |
| Alabama |
3.7 |
8.4 |
2.9 |
5.2 |
6.6 |
13.6 |
4.60% |
| Iowa |
2.4 |
7.2 |
3.3 |
5.3 |
5.7 |
12.4 |
4.60% |
| Michigan |
8.5 |
24.1 |
6.9 |
14.8 |
15.4 |
38.8 |
4.60% |
| Ohio |
10.5 |
24.7 |
8.8 |
22.2 |
19.3 |
47 |
4.60% |
| Wisconsin |
5.2 |
15.1 |
4.8 |
10.8 |
10 |
25.8 |
4.60% |
| Pennsylvania |
13.5 |
32.3 |
10.6 |
23.9 |
24.1 |
56.2 |
4.80% |
| South Carolina |
2.3 |
7.1 |
4.1 |
5.9 |
6.4 |
13 |
4.80% |
| Kentucky |
4.2 |
9.9 |
2.4 |
4.3 |
6.6 |
14.2 |
4.90% |
| Nebraska |
1.6 |
3.9 |
2.1 |
3.7 |
3.7 |
7.6 |
4.90% |
| New Jersey |
11 |
27.9 |
9.9 |
27 |
20.9 |
54.9 |
4.90% |
| Arizona |
4.6 |
10.5 |
6.2 |
10.2 |
10.8 |
20.6 |
5.00% |
| Illinois |
13.8 |
31.4 |
15.3 |
29.5 |
29.1 |
60.9 |
5.00% |
| Oklahoma |
3.4 |
7.2 |
2.6 |
4.2 |
5.9 |
11.5 |
5.00% |
| District of Colombia |
3.3 |
5.5 |
0 |
0 |
3.3 |
5.5 |
5.00% |
| Texas |
23.8 |
40.8 |
29.9 |
46.9 |
53.7 |
87.7 |
5.10% |
| California |
46.5 |
109.7 |
38.9 |
77 |
85.4 |
186.7 |
5.20% |
| Nevada |
3 |
6.1 |
2.8 |
5 |
5.8 |
11.1 |
5.20% |
| Louisiana |
4.6 |
8.9 |
5.4 |
7.4 |
9.9 |
16.4 |
5.30% |
| Washington |
9.3 |
17.1 |
5.9 |
11.8 |
15.3 |
28.9 |
5.40% |
| Hawaii |
1.5 |
4.9 |
1.2 |
1.8 |
2.8 |
6.7 |
5.50% |
| Kansas |
2.5 |
6.7 |
3.3 |
5.5 |
5.8 |
12.2 |
5.50% |
| Rhode Island |
1.1 |
2.8 |
1.2 |
2.5 |
2.3 |
5.2 |
5.50% |
| Montana |
1 |
2.2 |
0.7 |
1.2 |
1.7 |
3.4 |
5.90% |
| Mississippi |
2.5 |
6.4 |
2.2 |
2.8 |
4.7 |
9.2 |
6.00% |
| New Mexico |
2.4 |
4.5 |
1.3 |
2.3 |
3.7 |
6.8 |
6.00% |
| New York |
25.1 |
66.1 |
35.9 |
75.1 |
60.9 |
141.2 |
6.20% |
| Florida |
15 |
32.4 |
25.6 |
42.9 |
40.6 |
75.4 |
6.30% |
| West Virginia |
2.1 |
4.8 |
1.3 |
1.8 |
3.5 |
6.6 |
6.70% |
| Maine |
1.3 |
3.6 |
1.7 |
2.5 |
3 |
6.1 |
6.80% |
| Vermont |
1.2 |
2.6 |
0.3 |
0.5 |
1.5 |
3 |
7.10% |
| Wyoming |
1.6 |
2.2 |
1 |
1.4 |
2.6 |
3.6 |
8.10% |
| North Dakota |
1.9 |
2.7 |
0.6 |
1 |
2.5 |
3.7 |
8.60% |
| Alaska |
4.3 |
4.6 |
0.8 |
1.5 |
5.1 |
6.1 |
13.30% |
|
United Satates |
310.5 |
742.3 |
308.6 |
602.1 |
619.0 |
1,344.4 |
5.0% |
|
Calendar |
Monthly Meeting
Next business meeting:
Saturday May 19, 2012
2:00PM
Curry County Courthouse Annex
Blue Room
Gold Beach, OR
(Use Colvin St. Entrance)
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