Americans for Tax Reform and any signer of the Taxpayer Protection Pledge have one overarching mission: no tax hikes ever. The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) proved that pro-growth reform is possible, but as individual provisions are set to expire at the end of 2025, Congress must lock those Trump tax cuts in place. The biggest long-term momentum is coming from the states, showing where federal policy should head next.
Eight states already levy no personal income tax: Texas, Florida, New Hampshire, Tennessee, Alaska, Wyoming, South Dakota, and Nevada. As a result, families can keep more of their hard-earned money, and those states lead the nation in job growth.
Fifteen states now use a single-rate or flat income tax, and seven have adopted the flat tax in just the past five years. Flat taxes make it hard to raise taxes, as everyone would feel the burden of a tax increase, even those in the lower tax brackets.
Twelve states are beginning to phase their rates down to zero. While North Carolina is on track for elimination, Louisiana and Mississippi passed “trigger” laws where every dollar of revenue growth above a cap automatically ratchets the rate lower. West Virginia, Kentucky, Iowa, Ohio, South Carolina, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Missouri have each enacted or voted on similar paths towards lower state income tax rates.
When more than half of the states in the United States will boast either a flat tax rate or no tax at all within the next few years, federal lawmakers are faced with a question: Why is the federal code punishing the success their constituents are seeing under flatter, falling rates in their states?
Check out ATR’s latest video to see how the states are proving that the future is flat or zero income taxes:
Voters reward leaders who let them keep more of what they earn, and Congress must adopt this model. The message from the states is unmistakable: the future is zero. Let’s make sure the federal legislators in Washington hear it. Watch the video, share it, and join us in the fight to move state income taxes to zero.
