May 30, 2008
We love and we hate statistics. With the proper spin, they can prove or disprove anything one wishes to prove or disprove. Sometimes the same numbers can be used to both prove and disprove the same assertion. Numbers are wonderful things.
With that disclaimer, we present this: We recently received the 2008 edition of "50 State Comparisons," which is put out annually by The Taxpayers Network, a Wisconsin-based social-welfare organization.
Whether they meet the criteria of Mark Twain's three types of lies: lies, damn lies and statistics is pretty much a matter for the reader to decide. But we found some interesting data.
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Here's some unsettling news. Pennsylvania ranks 25th among states for state and local tax burden as a percentage of income, according to the Tax Foundation. We pay 10.8 percent to state and local taxes (and, hey, ho, even more to the feds.) But we could have it worse. Vermonters spend 14.1 percent on state and local taxes. So there's plenty of room to go up. Not that we want to give anyone any ideas. Let's instead point out that Alaskans pay just 6.6 percent of income to cover those costs. Let's strive toward that end of the scale, shall we? [Read the full article.]