State News Quick Hits: Criticism of “Business Climate” Rankings Grows, and More

Nebraska’s Tax Modernization Committee, which we promised to keep tabs on in July, is scheduled to hold its final public hearings this week. But rather than wait to hear what the panel has to say, Governor Dave Heineman decided to renew his calls for lower property and income taxes. While some have argued that Nebraska’s property taxes are too high, slashing property taxes without increasing state aid to local governments would put significant strain on vital local services. Today, Nebraska ranks 43rd nationally in the amount of state aid it provides to local governments, and 49th in the aid it gives to schools. If Governor Heineman succeeds in his quest to cut state taxes, increasing local aid will become even more difficult. The Open Sky Policy Institute has issued thoughtful recommendations on this and other issues facing the Committee.

If you’re wondering whether you should put any stock in the Tax Foundation’s newest “Business Tax Climate Index,” the answer is No.  For starters, Good Jobs First has shown that, contrary to popular belief, the Tax Foundation’s rankings aren’t a very good predictor of how much a business would actually pay in taxes if it were located in any given state.  And now Governing magazine has taken a critical look at the rankings in a new article, and concludes that states earning high marks from the Tax Foundation don’t actually have stronger job markets or higher medium wages.

U.S. News & World Report is running an opinion piece by Carl Davis from our partner organization, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), highlighting the fact that the federal gas tax has not been raised in exactly 20 years – and has been losing value ever since. The essay draws heavily from research that ITEP published late last month, and concludes that “it’s time for our elected officials to accept that keeping the gas tax cryogenically frozen at 18.4 cents per gallon is costing Americans a lot more than it’s helping them.”

West Virginia is thinking about how best to use the tax revenues it expects to collect from sales of its natural gas resources. The Associated Press reports that “[f]or decades, coal from West Virginia’s vast deposits was mined, loaded on rail cars and hauled off without leaving behind a lasting trust fund financed by the state’s best-known commodity. Big coal’s days are waning, but now a new bonanza in the natural gas fields has state leaders working to ensure history doesn’t repeat itself.” According to the AP, the state’s Senate president, Jeff Kessler, is looking to use some of the severance tax revenues on oil and natural gas to create an enduring trust fund, as other states with significant natural resources have done. “His goal: a cushion of funds long after the gas is depleted to buoy an Appalachian mountain state chronically vexed by poverty, high joblessness, and cycles of boom and bust.”

Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families Executive Director, Rich Huddleston, was one of four Arkansas leaders invited to contribute to Talk Business Arkansas magazine with ideas for how to “construct a fairer state tax code.” His proposal (citing ITEP data) is here, and begins: “The goal of any good tax system is to raise enough revenue to fund critical public investments that improve well-being of children and families while also promoting economic growth and prosperity.”