(The Center Square) – A new study shows that Illinois is not the place to be for low to middle-income wage earners from a tax perspective.
The personal finance website WalletHub has released “The Best States to be Rich or Poor from a Tax Perspective.” Researchers identified the best states where the residents spend the most and least on sales and excise taxes, property taxes and income taxes.
Researcher Cassandra Happe said Illinois is the worst state in the country to reside for low-income earners.
“They came in 40th overall for the sales and excise taxes for low-income earners, 45th overall for the property taxes, and 47th for the income taxes, so across the board, not a great scenario,” Happe said.
The total tax burden as a percentage of income in Illinois for low-income earners is nearly 14%. That is compared to less than 7% in Alaska.
It’s not much better for middle or high-income earners. Illinois ranked 49th in the country for middle-income earners and 45th in the nation for high-income earners.
According to WalletHub, the top three states with the least tax burden for high-income earners were Alaska, New Hampshire and North Dakota.
The top three states for middle-income earners were Alaska, New Hampshire and Delaware.
The top three states for low-income wage earners were Alaska, Montana and Vermont.
“The wealthy and less fortunate are both subject to taxes, but unfortunately people who are not as well off can end up getting hit harder due to the regressive nature of many taxes,” said Happe.
