Friday, May 19, 2017

The definition of insanity

Wall Street Journal: "Connecticut, Nation’s Wealthiest State, May be Tapped Out on Taxing the Rich."
About $200 million of the drop in receipts came from the state’s closely watched top 100 earners, who are the source of an outsize proportion of the state’s revenue. Many of the state’s richest residents work for hedge funds, which have been hurt by a downturn in the industry.

Gov. Dannel Malloy has twice before bet that taxing the wealthy would help solve the state’s fiscal problems. But neither increase resulted in sustained revenue growth, according to his administration, which says it would be a mistake to do it a third time.
This is what happens when you structure your progressive tax policy to hit only the very rich: when their revenue drops, it's a huge hit for the state.  Interesting that Malloy has finally figured out to stop tapping out the rich, almost like there's a lesson to learn here.

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