Strong Reliance on Property Taxes Still A Winner For New Hampshire - Granite Grok

Strong Reliance on Property Taxes Still A Winner For New Hampshire

NH Democrats fleece taxpayers againI have long remarked on how the relying on property taxes keeps the total tax burden down because when you see the taxes you pay in a lump sum (or two lump sums) you are more likely to inquire as to why you are paying that much and to what end.  This ‘interest’ in the machinations of government is what keeps the total tax burden lower.

And while one-sixth of all taxes are property based, New Hampshire citizens still rank as one of the least taxed states in the nation.

According to Census Bureau data, New Hampshire collected $1,791 in taxes per person in 2013. Only Florida ($1,769) and Georgia ($1,781) were lower.

Massachusetts collected almost twice as much: $3,571.

Maine collected $2,924 per person while Vermont collected $4,594

Sales and income taxes remove transparency by funneling tens of millions to the state capitol by pinching every transaction.  The sums add up but on their own seem insignificant at the time.  It is just another line on the paycheck or at the bottom of the receipt.And while fees in New Hampshire are “taxes” they are typically larger than your average sales tax event, visible, and infrequent, as in an annual registration, licensing, and so on.  If they grow, you notice, and often challenge the reasoning.    Visibility is the key to a lower overall tax burden.

But the stake through-the-heart to the idea of adding broad-based taxes to generate property tax relief is that it never happens.  There are no examples where this narrative is true.  Every state that has made the claim ended up having a higher tax burden because the new taxes just nickel and dime your hard-earned dollars on top of the taxes you already paid.

Vermont has significantly higher property taxes than New Hampshire, plus a sales tax, and income tax, and ranks third highest in the nation for Tax burden.  The state sucks that out of the pockets of families and out of the economy to be tossed down a hole in the state capital.

New Hampshire, on the other hand, has property taxes lower than Vermont, but no sales or income tax, and is the third lowest in overall tax burden per capita.   That means more money in your pocket and more decisions you can make in the marketplace with the money you earned.

So the next time an anti-property-tax activist gets in your face about tax burden, or how their great idea will lower taxes, tell them the truth, and then point to Vermont.

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