TaxWatch Report: Florida Maintains Low Tax Status, but Climbs Rankings in Per Capita, Local Tax Burdens
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Today, Florida TaxWatch (FTW) released its 2019 edition of the How Florida Compares: Taxes report. The FTW How Florida Compares: Taxes report is an easy-to-use guide to help Floridians better understand their state through comparing Florida’s taxes to those that are levied across the nation. The report, which is part of FTW’s larger How Florida Compares series, provides nonpartisan information on where Florida ranks and contains nearly 40 tables, graphs, and charts that provide a comprehensive look at tax collections and other government revenues for all 50 states.
In the report, Florida TaxWatch observes that while Florida continues to be a low tax state, per capita state and local revenue collections climbed from $5,679 in FY2014-15, to $5,733 in FY2015-16, moving the state from 42nd to 40th highest among the 50 states in total tax burden. As it has in previous years, the How Florida Compares: Taxes report for 2019 again shows that Florida relies more heavily than any other state on local tax revenues, which make up nearly 55 percent of total non-federal tax revenue in the Sunshine State.
Florida TaxWatch Chairman and former Florida Senator Pat Neal shared, “As Florida’s premier taxpayer public-policy research institution, Florida TaxWatch is proud to present our 2019 How Florida Compares: Taxes report, providing taxpayers and lawmakers with detailed insight into how our state truly compares in its tax burden on Florida families. While Florida remains a low tax state, this report shows that opportunities remain for our state to become even more competitive as we continue to attract families and business to make Florida home.”
Among the many state and local tax details laid out in How Florida Compares: Taxes, the report shows that despite reductions in the state’s communications services tax by the Florida Legislature in 2015, Florida’s “State & Local Cell Phone Tax Rate” is the 9th highest in the nation. At 14.83 percent in 2018, Florida’s cell phone tax is significantly higher than the national average of 12.46 percent.
To access an online copy of the 2019 How Florida Compares: Taxes guide is available here. To reserve a hard copy, contact Isobelle Ellis at iellis@floridataxwatch.org.
About Florida TaxWatch
As an independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit government watchdog and taxpayer research institute for forty years, the trusted eyes and ears of Florida taxpayers, Florida TaxWatch, works to improve the productivity and accountability of Florida government. Its research recommends productivity enhancements and explains the statewide impact of fiscal and economic policies and practices on citizens and businesses. Florida TaxWatch is supported by voluntary, tax-deductible donations and private grants, and does not accept government funding. Donations provide a solid, lasting foundation that has enabled Florida TaxWatch to bring about a more effective, responsive government that is more accountable to, and productive for, the citizens it serves since 1979. For more information, please visit www.floridataxwatch.org.