New Yorkers Shoulder More Than Their Fair Share

The people of New York State pay some of the highest taxes in the country. Over 10 percent of incomes are paid in the form of state taxes.

By: Henry Berkowitz

It comes as no shock to anyone who has lived in New York for more than a few months that New York City residents carry a heavy tax burden. Property taxes, sales taxes, and of course income taxes all take a chunk from the wallets of hard working New Yorkers. It isn't just city-dwellers that feel the pain opf overtaxation, either. The problem is statewide. New York residents pay 11.7 percent of their income in state taxes, which is far above the national average of 9.7 percent. That averages out to nearly $6,500 for each resident of the state; all of it is paid to state and local governments.

These numbers differ from previous years because of a change in the way that the Tax Foundation calculates its taxes. The new rule counts out of state taxes accrued by the NY resident as being “in-state”. For example, if your child's classmate lives in NYC but goes to school in Jersey, the clothing that she buys may as well have been bought in New York.

The Tax Foundation released its annual report, which classifies NYC as being number 3 on the list, down from number 2 a year ago. New Yorkers are actually paying less, at least as a percentage of income. Last year, New Yorkers paid out 13.8 percent of their income, nearly 2 percent more.