Depending on where you live in the U.S., your state and local taxes may have shifted over the last year.
The feared decline in American spending at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic never fully materialized as stimulus and pandemic aid programs kept consumers buying and sending sales taxes into state and local government coffers.
But while the stimulus-fueled spending spree alleviated concerns about bringing in tax revenue for critical functions in local government, it also helped spur record inflation. Some states are adjusting taxes in response: Utah, for example, moved to reduce individual and corporate income tax rates for 2022.
Stacker examined data from the nonprofit Tax Foundation to see which states have recorded the biggest tax growth in the last four decades. States were ranked by the percentage-point change of each state’s effective tax rate from 1980 to 2022. Ties were broken by the growth from 2021. The overall per capita burden was used if those numbers were the same.
Effective tax rates were calculated by dividing the state and local taxes residents pay by the state’s share of the gross national product. Those taxes include property, sales, income, and other taxes recorded by the Census Bureau’s State and Local Government Finance division.
In 2022, the national average state-local tax burden is 11.2%, unchanged from the year before. “Tax burden” is a term used to describe the effective amount of taxes each person in a state pays its government. “State-local” refers to a combination of state and local tax rates, excluding federal taxes. It can account for income and the portion of corporate taxes shifted to consumers via increased costs or lower wages.
Twenty-one states—including Oregon, Colorado, Alaska, Maryland, and Georgia—have lowered effective state-local tax rates since 1980. In Alaska, taxes on oil extraction have ensured a large portion of state taxes are footed by the business activities of nonresidents. Residents of the other 30 states have seen tax rates increase as much as three percentage points in that timeframe.
States with the largest tax growth have high effective tax rates overall, largely due to high state spending and tax payments to out-of-state governments. In Connecticut, for example, residents pay taxes to neighboring New York, while states with large tourism industries like Vermont and Hawaii export tax burdens to the rest of the U.S.
Only one state has seen tax rates rise more in the last four decades than the residents of the lush Hawaiian islands with its high cost of living and people paying a 14% effective tax rate (about $8,400 in taxes per person annually). Continue reading to see which it is.
You may also like: Cost of gold the year you were born
Marc Cappelletti // Shutterstock
#51. Alaska
– Change from 1980: -4.3 percentage points
– Change from 2021: +0.5 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 4.6%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $2,943
Gary R Ennis Photos // Shutterstock
#50. Michigan
– Change from 1980: -2.0 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.4 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 8.6%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $4,720
Canva
#49. North Dakota
– Change from 1980: -2.0 percentage points
– Change from 2021: +0.9 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 8.8%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $5,403
Sean Pavone // Shutterstock
#48. District of Columbia
– Change from 1980: -1.8 percentage points
– Change from 2021: +0.3 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 12.0%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $11,654
Canva
#47. Wisconsin
– Change from 1980: -1.3 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.4 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 10.9%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $6,231
ESB Professional // Shutterstock
#46. Georgia
– Change from 1980: -1.0 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.2 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 8.9%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $4,862
PQK // Shutterstock
#45. South Carolina
– Change from 1980: -0.8 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.5 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 8.9%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $4,596
Brandon Burris // Shutterstock
#44. Arizona
– Change from 1980: -0.7 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.1 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 9.5%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $5,156
quiggyt4 // Shutterstock
#43. Massachusetts
– Change from 1980: -0.6 percentage points
– Change from 2021: +0.1 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 11.5%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $9,405
Hank Shiffman // Shutterstock
#42. South Dakota
– Change from 1980: -0.5 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.3 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 8.4%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $5,196
Canva
#41. Wyoming
– Change from 1980: -0.4 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.8 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 7.5%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $4,691
Canva
#40. West Virginia
– Change from 1980: -0.4 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.3 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 9.8%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $4,479
Jess Kraft // Shutterstock
#39. Oregon
– Change from 1980: -0.4 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.3 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 10.8%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $6,572
Nolichuckyjake // Shutterstock
#38. Tennessee
– Change from 1980: -0.4 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.1 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 7.6%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $4,036
eurobanks // Shutterstock
#37. Maryland
– Change from 1980: -0.3 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.6 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 11.3%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $7,680
Lauren Orr // Shutterstock
#36. Colorado
– Change from 1980: -0.3 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.3 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 9.7%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $6,699
Kevin Ruck // Shutterstock
#35. North Carolina
– Change from 1980: -0.3 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.2 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 9.9%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $5,299
Canva
#34. Kentucky
– Change from 1980: -0.2 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.4 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 9.6%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $4,669
Ramunas Bruzas // Shutterstock
#33. Rhode Island
– Change from 1980: -0.2 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.3 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 11.4%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $6,948
Paul Brady Photography // Shutterstock
#32. Missouri
– Change from 1980: -0.1 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.1 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 9.3%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $4,953
Sean Pavone // Shutterstock
#31. Pennsylvania
– Change from 1980: -0.1 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.1 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 10.6%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $6,723
Canva
#30. Idaho
– Change from 1980: +0.2 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.1 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 10.7%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $5,402
TLF Images // Shutterstock
#29. Oklahoma
– Change from 1980: +0.3 percentage points
– Change from 2021: 0.0 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 9.0%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $4,527
Canva
#28. Mississippi
– Change from 1980: +0.4 percentage points
– Change from 2021: 0.0 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 9.8%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $4,220
FotosForTheFuture // Shutterstock
#27. Florida
– Change from 1980: +0.4 percentage points
– Change from 2021: 0.0 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 9.1%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $5,406
Canva
#26. Iowa
– Change from 1980: +0.5 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.3 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 11.2%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $6,086
Canva
#25. Alabama
– Change from 1980: +0.5 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.2 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 9.8%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $4,585
Canva
#24. Nebraska
– Change from 1980: +0.7 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.2 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 11.5%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $6,720
Canva
#23. Ohio
– Change from 1980: +0.8 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.4 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 10.0%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $5,530
turtix // Shutterstock
#22. New Mexico
– Change from 1980: +0.9 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.3 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 10.2%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $4,835
Canva
#21. Montana
– Change from 1980: +0.9 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.2 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 10.5%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $5,795
Roschetzky Photography // Shutterstock
#20. Texas
– Change from 1980: +0.9 percentage points
– Change from 2021: +0.2 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 8.6%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $4,994
Trong Nguyen // Shutterstock
#19. Arkansas
– Change from 1980: +1.0 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.5 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 10.2%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $5,031
Canva
#18. Indiana
– Change from 1980: +1.0 percentage points
– Change from 2021: 0.0 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 9.3%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $5,030
Jason Finn // Shutterstock
#17. Utah
– Change from 1980: +1.0 percentage points
– Change from 2021: +0.2 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 12.1%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $6,750
Max Lindenthaler // Shutterstock
#16. Washington
– Change from 1980: +1.1 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.3 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 10.7%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $7,803
Canva
#15. Louisiana
– Change from 1980: +1.1 percentage points
– Change from 2021: 0.0 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 9.1%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $4,762
Wangkun Jia // Shutterstock
#14. New Hampshire
– Change from 1980: +1.1 percentage points
– Change from 2021: +0.1 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 9.6%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $6,593
f11photo // Shutterstock
#13. New Jersey
– Change from 1980: +1.1 percentage points
– Change from 2021: +0.2 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 13.2%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $9,648
Sandra Burm // Shutterstock
#12. Minnesota
– Change from 1980: +1.2 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.3 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 12.1%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $7,763
Canva
#11. Maine
– Change from 1980: +1.5 percentage points
– Change from 2021: 0.0 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 12.4%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $6,906
Canva
#10. Kansas
– Change from 1980: +1.6 percentage points
– Change from 2021: +0.1 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 11.2%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $6,353
Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock
#9. Nevada
– Change from 1980: +1.8 percentage points
– Change from 2021: -0.3 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 9.6%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $5,554
Real Window Creative // Shutterstock
#8. Delaware
– Change from 1980: +2.1 percentage points
– Change from 2021: +0.2 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 12.4%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $7,170
Rigucci // Shutterstock
#7. California
– Change from 1980: +2.1 percentage points
– Change from 2021: +0.2 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 13.5%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $10,167
Canva
#6. Virginia
– Change from 1980: +2.1 percentage points
– Change from 2021: +0.1 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 12.5%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $7,979
DiegoMariottini // Shutterstock
#5. Illinois
– Change from 1980: +2.3 percentage points
– Change from 2021: 0.0 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 12.9%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $8,390
GagliardiPhotography // Shutterstock
#4. New York
– Change from 1980: +2.7 percentage points
– Change from 2021: +0.7 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 15.9%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $12,083
Sean Pavone // Shutterstock
#3. Vermont
– Change from 1980: +2.8 percentage points
– Change from 2021: +0.2 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 13.6%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $7,958
Canva
#2. Hawaii
– Change from 1980: +3.1 percentage points
– Change from 2021: +0.2 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 14.1%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $8,410
James Kirkikis // Shutterstock
#1. Connecticut
– Change from 1980: +4.9 percentage points
– Change from 2021: +0.7 percentage points
– State-local effective tax rate 2022: 15.4%
– State-local tax burden per capita: $12,151
Stacker
Stacker is a news organization that produces and distributes data journalism to the world’s news organizations. Founded in 2017, Stacker combines data analysis with rich editorial context, drawing on authoritative sources and subject matter experts to drive storytelling. This article has been republished pursuant to a CC BY-NC 4.0 License.