January 4, 2008 |
2008-R-0018 | |
PROPERTY TAXES IN CONNECTICUT COMPARED TO OTHER STATES | ||
| ||
By: Ryan F. O'Neil, Research Assistant | ||
You asked if a study has been done comparing property taxes in different states. You also wanted to know why property taxes seem lower in other states than Connecticut.
SUMMARY
In 2001, the National Conference of State Legislatures (NSCL) conducted a comprehensive 50-state survey of state and local property taxes. We have included tables from the report but updated them using data from 2005. The study compared the states based on various measures, including property taxes paid, property taxes paid per capita, and percentage of state and local revenue raised from property and other taxes. Connecticut ranked near the top on many of these measures, including the total property taxes collected and the amount paid by taxpayers as a percentage of per capita income.
These measures suggest that property taxes are higher in Connecticut than other states. But data comparing the share of state and local revenue generated by property taxes shows that Connecticut relies more on this tax to fund public services than other states. Other factors that might account for differences in property taxes include regional differences in the cost of living and services and differences in the types and levels of services each state provides.
NSCL STUDY
The 2001 NCSL study, A Guide to Property Taxes, (www.ncsl.org/legis/fiscal/gproptax1.htm) explained that property taxes vary widely by state. The tax study examined property taxes collected by different types of jurisdictions, including states; cities and towns; counties; school districts; and special taxing districts, such as fire districts.
The report points out that looking at taxes paid in terms of per capita income allows for comparison across states with populations of any size. Included in the report are tables showing how Connecticut ranks in total property taxes paid and as a percent of per capita income. We have updated that information using 2005 data in Table 1 (see below). Connecticut ranks third among all states and the District of Columbia in property taxes paid per capita and sixth overall for property taxes paid out as a percentage of per capita income.
Table 1: States and Property Taxes Ranked by Payment Per Capita and as a Percentage of Income, 2005
State |
Property Tax Collected in 2005 (thousands of dollars) |
2005 population |
Property Taxes Paid Per Capita in 2005 |
Rank |
Per Capita Income in 2005 |
Percentage of Per Capita Income Paid out in Property Taxes in 2005 |
Rank |
Alabama |
$1,561,184 |
4,557,808 |
$343 |
50 |
$29,136 |
1.18% |
50 |
Alaska |
849,395 |
663,661 |
1,280 |
13 |
35,612 |
3.59% |
14 |
Arizona |
4,752,052 |
5,939,292 |
800 |
37 |
30,267 |
2.64% |
31 |
Arkansas |
615,700 |
2,779,154 |
222 |
51 |
26,874 |
0.82% |
51 |
California |
31,894,040 |
36,132,147 |
883 |
31 |
37,036 |
2.38% |
38 |
Colorado |
4,940,398 |
4,665,177 |
1,059 |
22 |
37,946 |
2.79% |
30 |
Connecticut |
7,155,644 |
3,510,297 |
2,038 |
3 |
47,819 |
4.26% |
6 |
Delaware |
485,848 |
843,524 |
576 |
43 |
37,065 |
1.55% |
46 |
District of Columbia |
1,135,527 |
550,521 |
2,063 |
2 |
54,985 |
3.75% |
12 |
Florida |
20,089,293 |
17,789,864 |
1,129 |
16 |
33,219 |
3.40% |
17 |
Georgia |
8,147,523 |
9,072,576 |
898 |
30 |
31,121 |
2.89% |
27 |
Hawaii |
818,239 |
1,275,194 |
642 |
42 |
34,539 |
1.86% |
44 |
Idaho |
1,153,841 |
1,429,096 |
807 |
34 |
28,158 |
2.87% |
29 |
Illinois |
18,634,001 |
12,763,371 |
1,460 |
9 |
36,120 |
4.04% |
9 |
Indiana |
7,630,118 |
6,271,973 |
1,217 |
14 |
31,276 |
3.89% |
10 |
Iowa |
3,302,265 |
2,966,334 |
1,113 |
17 |
32,315 |
3.44% |
16 |
Kansas |
3,029,831 |
2,744,687 |
1,104 |
19 |
32,836 |
3.36% |
18 |
Kentucky |
1,771,373 |
4,173,405 |
424 |
49 |
28,513 |
1.49% |
49 |
Louisiana |
2,383,985 |
4,523,628 |
527 |
45 |
24,820 |
2.12% |
41 |
Maine |
2,108,308 |
1,321,505 |
1,595 |
8 |
31,252 |
5.10% |
1 |
Maryland |
5,065,733 |
5,600,388 |
905 |
27 |
41,760 |
2.17% |
40 |
Massachusetts |
10,341,056 |
6,398,743 |
1,616 |
7 |
44,289 |
3.65% |
13 |
Michigan |
10,766,865 |
10,120,860 |
1,064 |
21 |
33,116 |
3.21% |
19 |
Minnesota |
4,631,747 |
5,132,799 |
902 |
28 |
37,373 |
2.41% |
37 |
Mississippi |
1,923,377 |
2,921,088 |
658 |
40 |
25,318 |
2.60% |
32 |
Missouri |
4,672,239 |
5,800,310 |
806 |
35 |
31,899 |
2.53% |
34 |
Montana |
812,098 |
935,670 |
868 |
33 |
29,387 |
2.95% |
26 |
Nebraska |
2,099,427 |
1,758,787 |
1,194 |
15 |
33,616 |
3.55% |
15 |
Nevada |
2,171,766 |
2,414,807 |
899 |
29 |
35,883 |
2.51% |
35 |
New Hampshire |
2,258,061 |
1,309,940 |
1,724 |
5 |
38,408 |
4.49% |
4 |
New Jersey |
19,193,115 |
8,717,925 |
2,202 |
1 |
43,771 |
5.03% |
2 |
New Mexico |
822,315 |
1,928,384 |
426 |
48 |
27,644 |
1.54% |
47 |
New York |
34,149,967 |
19,254,630 |
1,774 |
4 |
40,507 |
4.38% |
5 |
North Carolina |
6,449,622 |
8,683,242 |
743 |
38 |
30,553 |
2.43% |
36 |
North Dakota |
618,376 |
636,677 |
971 |
25 |
31,395 |
3.09% |
21 |
Ohio |
11,936,813 |
11,464,042 |
1,041 |
23 |
32,478 |
3.21% |
20 |
Oklahoma |
1,718,634 |
3,547,884 |
484 |
47 |
29,330 |
1.65% |
45 |
Oregon |
3,538,528 |
3,641,056 |
972 |
24 |
32,103 |
3.03% |
24 |
Pennsylvania |
13,332,550 |
12,429,616 |
1,073 |
20 |
34,897 |
3.07% |
23 |
Rhode Island |
1,817,825 |
1,076,189 |
1,689 |
6 |
36,153 |
4.67% |
3 |
South Carolina |
3,729,185 |
4,255,083 |
876 |
32 |
28,352 |
3.09% |
22 |
South Dakota |
730,122 |
775,933 |
941 |
26 |
31,614 |
2.98% |
25 |
Tennessee |
3,894,418 |
5,962,959 |
653 |
41 |
31,107 |
2.10% |
42 |
Texas |
30,275,679 |
22,859,968 |
1,324 |
12 |
32,462 |
4.08% |
8 |
Utah |
1,792,451 |
2,469,585 |
726 |
39 |
28,061 |
2.59% |
33 |
Vermont |
311,820 |
623,050 |
500 |
46 |
33,327 |
1.50% |
48 |
Virginia |
8,371,520 |
7,567,465 |
1,106 |
18 |
38,390 |
2.88% |
28 |
Washington |
5,046,577 |
6,287,759 |
803 |
36 |
35,409 |
2.27% |
39 |
West Virginia |
1,004,771 |
1,816,856 |
553 |
44 |
27,215 |
2.03% |
43 |
Wisconsin |
7,683,856 |
5,536,201 |
1,388 |
11 |
33,565 |
4.14% |
7 |
Wyoming |
709,889 |
509,294 |
1,394 |
10 |
36,778 |
3.79% |
11 |
United States Total |
324,328,967 |
296,410,404 |
$1,094 |
$34,586 |
3.16% |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Many states and municipalities rely on other revenue sources besides the property tax. But Connecticut towns rely almost solely on property taxes. Table 2 compares state and local tax revenue by source and shows that while one form of taxation is high in a given state, that same state might collect less money through other means of taxation.
For example, Connecticut ranks eighth in percentage of taxes collected via property tax but 40th in sales tax, which the NCSL report stated generally is pattern for New England. New Hampshire ranks first, Maine, fourth, Vermont, fifth, Rhode Island, sixth, and Massachusetts, 11th. (Not every state and the District of Columbia uses every method, so those categories do not have rankings that go to 51.) “Selective Sales” refers to taxes on specific goods, such as cigarettes, alcohol, and gas. “Other” refers to taxes and fees such as those for hunting and fishing licenses.
Table 2: State and Local Tax Collection by Source, 2005
State |
Property |
Rank |
Sales |
Rank |
Selective Sales |
Rank |
Individual Income |
Rank |
Corporate Income |
Rank |
Other |
Rank |
Alabama |
15.3% |
47 |
30.2% |
12 |
18.8% |
3 |
22.6% |
28 |
3.4% |
27 |
9.6% |
21 |
Alaska |
30.3 |
23 |
5.3 |
47 |
8.2 |
46 |
n.a. |
-- |
20.0 |
1 |
36.2 |
2 |
Arizona |
28.0 |
31 |
38.3 |
7 |
9.4 |
38 |
15.5 |
41 |
3.8 |
19 |
4.9 |
48 |
Arkansas |
14.6 |
50 |
41.3 |
3 |
12.3 |
20 |
23.3 |
26 |
3.4 |
26 |
5.1 |
47 |
California |
23.2 |
42 |
25.6 |
23 |
7.8 |
47 |
29.3 |
10 |
5.9 |
6 |
8.1 |
25 |
Colorado |
31.5 |
21 |
28.0 |
16 |
8.3 |
43 |
24.0 |
24 |
2.0 |
44 |
6.1 |
38 |
Connecticut |
37.9 |
8 |
17.3 |
40 |
9.8 |
35 |
26.6 |
14 |
3.0 |
31 |
5.3 |
43 |
Delaware |
14.8 |
48 |
n.a. |
|
12.4 |
19 |
28.4 |
11 |
7.6 |
4 |
36.8 |
1 |
District of Columbia |
26.4 |
34 |
19.7 |
34 |
9.9 |
34 |
26.7 |
12 |
4.6 |
12 |
12.6 |
11 |
Florida |
34.1 |
14 |
33.5 |
11 |
16.2 |
9 |
n.a. |
-- |
3.0 |
30 |
13.2 |
9 |
Georgia |
29.9 |
25 |
27.9 |
18 |
9.0 |
39 |
26.7 |
13 |
2.6 |
34 |
4.0 |
50 |
Hawaii |
14.8 |
49 |
38.7 |
6 |
13.7 |
15 |
25.0 |
18 |
2.2 |
42 |
5.5 |
42 |
Idaho |
27.6 |
32 |
27.0 |
19 |
9.5 |
37 |
24.9 |
21 |
3.4 |
25 |
7.7 |
26 |
Illinois |
38.0 |
7 |
17.0 |
41 |
17.0 |
5 |
16.2 |
39 |
4.4 |
14 |
7.4 |
30 |
Indiana |
35.8 |
12 |
23.4 |
25 |
10.7 |
29 |
22.6 |
29 |
3.9 |
17 |
3.7 |
51 |
Iowa |
34.0 |
15 |
22.3 |
30 |
10.3 |
31 |
23.8 |
25 |
1.9 |
45 |
7.7 |
27 |
Kansas |
32.9 |
17 |
26.8 |
20 |
10.1 |
33 |
21.8 |
31 |
2.6 |
37 |
5.6 |
41 |
Kentucky |
18.3 |
43 |
21.2 |
31 |
16.7 |
7 |
30.9 |
6 |
3.9 |
16 |
8.9 |
23 |
Louisiana |
17.0 |
46 |
39.7 |
4 |
14.0 |
12 |
16.7 |
38 |
2.5 |
39 |
10.1 |
18 |
Maine |
41.2 |
4 |
17.9 |
38 |
8.2 |
45 |
24.9 |
22 |
2.6 |
36 |
5.2 |
45 |
Maryland |
23.4 |
41 |
12.1 |
46 |
12.0 |
23 |
38.3 |
2 |
3.4 |
24 |
10.8 |
17 |
Massachusetts |
36.0 |
11 |
13.5 |
44 |
7.1 |
49 |
33.7 |
3 |
4.6 |
11 |
5.1 |
46 |
Michigan |
36.6 |
9 |
22.9 |
27 |
10.5 |
30 |
18.6 |
36 |
5.4 |
7 |
6.0 |
39 |
Minnesota |
25.1 |
37 |
20.4 |
32 |
12.2 |
21 |
30.3 |
8 |
4.5 |
13 |
7.6 |
28 |
Mississippi |
26.3 |
35 |
34.6 |
9 |
13.3 |
16 |
15.7 |
40 |
3.8 |
18 |
6.4 |
33 |
Missouri |
26.9 |
33 |
28.0 |
17 |
12.5 |
18 |
24.9 |
19 |
1.4 |
47 |
6.4 |
34 |
Montana |
29.8 |
26 |
n.a. |
|
16.9 |
6 |
26.2 |
16 |
3.6 |
22 |
23.5 |
4 |
Nebraska |
31.9 |
19 |
26.8 |
21 |
8.3 |
44 |
21.2 |
32 |
3.0 |
32 |
8.8 |
24 |
Nevada |
25.7 |
36 |
33.9 |
10 |
25.1 |
1 |
n.a. |
-- |
n.a. |
-- |
15.4 |
8 |
New Hampshire |
61.4 |
1 |
n.a. |
|
16.3 |
8 |
1.6 |
43 |
11.0 |
2 |
9.7 |
19 |
New Jersey |
45.1 |
2 |
15.4 |
42 |
8.7 |
41 |
19.3 |
35 |
5.2 |
8 |
6.3 |
35 |
New Mexico |
14.2 |
51 |
35.5 |
8 |
11.5 |
26 |
17.9 |
37 |
4.0 |
15 |
16.9 |
7 |
New York |
30.7 |
22 |
19.0 |
36 |
6.2 |
50 |
31.4 |
5 |
6.3 |
5 |
6.4 |
31 |
North Carolina |
23.6 |
40 |
22.9 |
28 |
11.6 |
25 |
30.9 |
7 |
4.7 |
10 |
6.4 |
32 |
North Dakota |
29.2 |
27 |
22.6 |
29 |
14.7 |
11 |
11.4 |
42 |
3.6 |
23 |
18.5 |
5 |
Ohio |
28.7 |
30 |
23.1 |
26 |
7.4 |
48 |
31.4 |
4 |
3.2 |
29 |
6.2 |
37 |
Oklahoma |
17.1 |
45 |
29.1 |
15 |
9.5 |
36 |
24.5 |
23 |
1.7 |
46 |
18.1 |
6 |
Oregon |
32.1 |
18 |
n.a. |
|
8.7 |
40 |
43.5 |
1 |
3.3 |
28 |
12.4 |
13 |
Pennsylvania |
29.1 |
28 |
17.9 |
39 |
11.7 |
24 |
24.9 |
20 |
3.7 |
21 |
12.7 |
10 |
Rhode Island |
40.4 |
6 |
18.8 |
37 |
12.1 |
22 |
22.2 |
30 |
2.5 |
38 |
4.1 |
49 |
South Carolina |
31.7 |
20 |
25.7 |
22 |
10.2 |
32 |
22.8 |
27 |
2.1 |
43 |
7.6 |
29 |
South Dakota |
34.7 |
13 |
39.6 |
5 |
13.8 |
14 |
n.a. |
-- |
2.3 |
40 |
9.5 |
22 |
Tennessee |
24.4 |
39 |
47.3 |
1 |
11.3 |
28 |
1.0 |
44 |
5.0 |
9 |
11.0 |
15 |
Texas |
43.8 |
3 |
29.3 |
14 |
15.7 |
10 |
n.a. |
-- |
n.a. |
-- |
11.2 |
14 |
Utah |
24.5 |
38 |
29.9 |
13 |
11.4 |
27 |
26.4 |
15 |
2.6 |
35 |
5.2 |
44 |
Vermont |
41.0 |
5 |
12.2 |
45 |
18.3 |
4 |
19.4 |
34 |
2.7 |
33 |
6.3 |
36 |
Virginia |
30.3 |
24 |
14.6 |
43 |
13.0 |
17 |
30.2 |
9 |
2.2 |
41 |
9.7 |
20 |
Washington |
28.9 |
29 |
46.3 |
2 |
13.8 |
13 |
n.a. |
-- |
n.a. |
-- |
10.9 |
16 |
West Virginia |
18.2 |
44 |
19.7 |
35 |
20.1 |
2 |
21.1 |
33 |
8.3 |
3 |
12.5 |
12 |
Wisconsin |
36.4 |
10 |
20.1 |
33 |
8.4 |
42 |
25.5 |
17 |
3.7 |
20 |
5.8 |
40 |
Wyoming |
33.3 |
16 |
25.5 |
24 |
5.2 |
51 |
n.a. |
-- |
n.a. |
-- |
36.0 |
3 |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Table 3 shows the difference between three way to measure and compare taxation: total taxes, taxes per capita, and taxes paid as a percent of total personal income. Connecticut rank fifth in the amount of taxes collected per capita but drops to 23rd based on taxes as a percentage of per capita personal income.
Table 3: Total State Tax Revenue, 2006
State |
Total Taxes ($ million) |
Per Capita |
Rank |
% of Pers. Income |
Rank |
Alabama |
8,530 |
1,855 |
42 |
6.3 |
39 |
Alaska |
2,484 |
3,708 |
4 |
10.5 |
4 |
Arizona |
11,713 |
1,900 |
41 |
6.6 |
34 |
Arkansas |
6,959 |
2,476 |
20 |
9.4 |
7 |
California |
111,347 |
3,054 |
8 |
8.3 |
13 |
Colorado |
8,522 |
1,793 |
45 |
4.9 |
48 |
Connecticut |
12,132 |
3,461 |
5 |
7.3 |
23 |
Delaware |
2,861 |
3,352 |
7 |
9.2 |
8 |
Florida |
37,202 |
2,056 |
38 |
6.2 |
41 |
Georgia |
17,034 |
1,819 |
43 |
6 |
44 |
Hawaii |
4,919 |
3,826 |
3 |
11.2 |
2 |
Idaho |
3,143 |
2,143 |
35 |
7.7 |
18 |
Ilinois |
28,129 |
2,192 |
31 |
6.1 |
42 |
Indiana |
13,626 |
2,158 |
33 |
7 |
28 |
Iowa |
6,119 |
2,052 |
39 |
6.5 |
35 |
Kansas |
6,275 |
2,270 |
26 |
6.9 |
29 |
Kentucky |
9,953 |
2,366 |
22 |
8.4 |
12 |
Louisiana |
9,651 |
2,251 |
28 |
8.7 |
11 |
Maine |
3,590 |
2,717 |
12 |
8.8 |
10 |
Maryland |
14,550 |
2,591 |
14 |
6.2 |
40 |
Massachusetts |
19,395 |
3,013 |
9 |
6.9 |
30 |
Michigan |
23,715 |
2,349 |
23 |
7.2 |
25 |
Minnesota |
17,331 |
3,354 |
6 |
9.1 |
9 |
Mississippi |
5,990 |
2,058 |
37 |
8.2 |
14 |
Missouri |
10,180 |
1,742 |
47 |
5.6 |
46 |
Montana |
2,126 |
2,251 |
27 |
7.8 |
17 |
Nebraska |
3,961 |
2,240 |
30 |
6.8 |
31 |
Nevada |
6,153 |
2,466 |
21 |
7.1 |
26 |
New Hampshire |
2,081 |
1,582 |
48 |
4.2 |
50 |
New Jersey |
24,849 |
2,848 |
10 |
6.5 |
36 |
New Mexico |
5,111 |
2,615 |
13 |
9.5 |
5 |
New York |
54,549 |
2,825 |
11 |
7.1 |
27 |
North Carolina |
20,603 |
2,326 |
25 |
7.7 |
19 |
North Dakota |
1,622 |
2,551 |
17 |
8.2 |
15 |
Ohio |
24,637 |
2,146 |
34 |
6.7 |
32 |
Oklahoma |
7,784 |
2,175 |
32 |
7.3 |
22 |
Oregon |
7,590 |
2,051 |
40 |
6.5 |
37 |
Pennsylvania |
29,051 |
2,335 |
24 |
6.7 |
33 |
Rhode Island |
2,742 |
2,568 |
15 |
7.2 |
24 |
South Carolina |
7,760 |
1,796 |
44 |
6.5 |
38 |
South Dakota |
1,182 |
1,512 |
50 |
4.7 |
49 |
Tennessee |
10,650 |
1,764 |
46 |
5.8 |
45 |
Texas |
36,592 |
1,557 |
49 |
4.9 |
47 |
Utah |
5,459 |
2,141 |
36 |
8 |
16 |
Vermont |
2,407 |
3,857 |
2 |
11.8 |
1 |
Virginia |
17,192 |
2,249 |
29 |
6.1 |
43 |
Washington |
16,411 |
2,566 |
16 |
7.4 |
21 |
West Virginia |
4,558 |
2,507 |
18 |
9.5 |
6 |
Wisconsin |
13,795 |
2,483 |
19 |
7.5 |
20 |
Wyoming |
2,122 |
4,121 |
1 |
11.2 |
3 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census and Bureau of Economic Analysis.
The NCSL report concluded with two important disclaimers. First, many states, including Connecticut, provide property tax relief. States do this in a variety of ways and it cannot easily be captured by the data tables. Connecticut provides exemptions to seniors and veterans, among others, and allows property tax to be taken as a credit when filing the state's income tax. States that provide less property tax relief would be able to charge less to its population as a whole.
Secondly, the report underscores the point that relatively high tax jurisdictions may provide more services, including schools, road and highway construction and maintenance, parks, libraries, and social services. Further, the cost of providing similar services often varies between states. Highway maintenance costs can be far higher per mile of road in states with colder climates because of snow and ice must be removed and subsequent damage repaired.
RO:dw