Budget & Tax

Voting with his feet

May 28, 2009

A recent article in the New York Post (‘Adios, New York') is evidence that tax policy matters for economic growth. High taxes at the state level can cause individuals and companies to take their profits elsewhere. One former New Yorker has chosen to vote with his feet by moving to Florida to escape the high tax rates of his home state. By domiciling in Florida (a state with no income tax), he will save over $5 million annually.

An OCPA study last year made the case that "rising tax burdens are detrimental to economic growth. States that have high and/or increasing taxes relative to the national average experience relative declines in income, housing, values, and population, as well as rising relative unemployment rates." These exceedingly high tax burdens result from bloated bureaucracies and the inefficient manner in which they perform their designated jobs. The lesson for Oklahomans is to spend responsibly in order to avoid the necessity of raising taxes, which would increase the risk of Oklahoma losing key players in our economy to neighboring states.