The Washington Examiner ran a short piece on the recently released taxpayer migration study from the Freedom Foundation. The article originally ran on 2/12/10 on the Washington Examiner website and can be found here. Otherwise, continue reading below.
Failed States watch: Minnesotans leaving state for lower taxes, high temps
By: J.P. Freire
Associate Commentary Editor
02/12/10 1:57 PM EST
States with more competitive tax rates are receiving an influx of thousands of Minnesotans, according to a report from the Freedom Foundation of Minnesota.
From 2002-2009 Minnesota lost an estimated 54,113 residents to other states, according to the new report, Minnesota’s Out-Migration Compounds State Budget Woes. These out-migrants also take their incomes with them. Between 1995 and 2007, the total amount of income leaving the state was at least $3,698,692,000 on which state and local governments would have collected an estimated $423,317,000 in additional taxes.
Coming at a time of financial crisis and when state budgets are over their limits, resident emigration is a signal to legislators that higher taxes are not the solution. The question, of course, is whether politicians will pay attention and start making cuts, or continue running their state into the ground, like those in California or nearby Michigan.
Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/blogs/beltway-confidential/Failed-States-watch-Minnesotans-leaving-state-for-lower-taxes-high-temps-84242387.html#ixzz0wQSy3jjt
