State’s Business Tax Climate: 40th and Holding

Connecticut’s ranking among all state business tax climates remained unchanged in the Tax Foundation’s latest report. We’re 40th, a position the state has held for the past three years.
The non-profit foundation released its 2013 State Business Tax Climate Index this week. There was little change among the top 10 states, with most of the movement at the bottom end of the index.
New York fell a spot to last place, continuing a three-year decline. The state’s moderate corporate taxes were offset by having the worst individual income tax, the sixth-worst unemployment insurance taxes, and the sixth-worst property taxes.
“The states in the bottom 10 suffer from the same afflictions,” says the foundation’s report. “Complex, non-neutral taxes with comparatively high rates.”
New England states
After two years at the bottom of the index, New Jersey replaced New York at 49. 
Vermont repeated at 47th, as Rhode Island did at 46. New Hampshire was again the best of the New England states, repeating at number seven. Massachusetts rose from 23rd to 22nd, while Maine jumped seven spots to 30th.
Maine’s most improved ranking was based on a repeal of the alternative minimum tax and a change in the treatment of net operating losses.
There was no change among the top 10: Wyoming, South Dakota, Nevada, Alaska, Florida, Washington, New Hampshire, Montana, Texas, and Utah.
Index factors
“The absence of a major tax is a dominant factor in vaulting many of these ten states to the top of the rankings.” the report said.
“Property taxes and unemployment insurance taxes are levied in every state, but there are several states that do without one or more of the major taxes: the corporate tax, the individual income tax, or the sales tax.”
Why is Connecticut ranked 40th? Look at those major taxes: the state ranks 50th in property tax, 35th in corporate income tax again, 31st in both the individual income tax and the unemployment insurance tax, and 30th in sales tax.
The state’s position on the index belies the fact the General Assembly passed the largest tax increase in history last year. Tax increases in other states kept Connecticut from falling into the bottom 10.