THE UTAH TAXPAYER: MONTHLY NEWSLETTER
Each month, the Utah Taxpayers Association releases a newsletter. This newsletter features the latest tax news from across the state. From the Capitol, city halls, county commissions, and the nation, we’ve got you covered.
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– A Very Unpopular Statement, but a Truthful One: Eliminating the Sales Tax on Food is a Bad Idea
– 2021 Year in Review: Many Wins for Taxpayers
– Guest Commentary – Scott Smith: Tax Commission and Association Work to Clarify Auditing Process
– Final Interim Commitee Hearings of 2021 Move Towards Progress for Taxpayers
– New Association Report Finds that On Average, Utahns Pay $1,025 in Taxes and Fees to County Government
– Your Association Accomplishments in November
– Taxpayers Association Makes the Case for a Sustainable Income Tax Cut at Interim Committee Meeting
– Cannon’s Canon: The Height of Hypocrisy – Eliminating the SALT Cap
– Results of November’s Ballot will Affect Taxpayers for Years to Come
– Your Association Accomplishments in October
– Following Years of Increases, Salt Lake County Council Discusses Providing Relief for Property Taxpayers
– Cannon’s Canon: If We Want our Children to Stay in Utah, Then Major Action Needs to Be Taken to Provide Relief to All Utahns
– While Most States’ Funds are Insolvent, Utah’s Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund is in Decent Shape and Could Emerge Stronger
– By The Numbers: Examining Capital Gains Proposal in $3.5 Trillion Infrastructure Bill
– Your Association Accomplishments in September
– 53% of $213 Million in Local Property Tax Incentives Came from School Districts in 2020
– Guest Commentary – Jonathan Williams: To Remain Competitive, Utah Needs to Lower its Income Tax Rate
– Utah’s Truth-in Taxation Law in the National Spotlight as Various States Follow our Lead
– Your Association Accomplishments in August
– Will Your Property Taxes Be Increasing This Year?
– Cannon’s Canon: Setting the Record Straight – Government-Owned Broadband Doesn’t Work
– New Association Report Finds on Average, Utahns Pay $668 in Taxes and Fees to City Government
– Unhappy with your Property Assessment? Learn How to Appeal
– National Data on Property Taxes Shows How Valuable Utah’s Truth-in-Taxation Law Has Become
– Your Association Accomplishments in August
– New Association Report Calculates How Much the Typical Utah Family Pays in Taxes and Fees
– Cannon’s Canon: Utah Will Have Another Huge Surplus; It is Time for the Legislature to Return Money to Taxpayers
– Utah’s Drought: The Real Way to Encourage Conservation is Through a Change in Tax Policy
– Interim Committees Examine Possibility of Future Tax Cuts and Changing the Structure of Funding Transportation
– Congressman John Curtis Should be Applauded for Reminding Taxpayer: Government Run Broadband Network Don’t Work
– Your Association Accomplishments in June
– Utah Collected $989 Annually from Each Resident in Sales Taxes, According to New Survey
– Cannon’s Canon: Utah’s Pension System is in Far Better Shape than Most Other States and it Needs to Stay That Way
– Preeminent Tax Conference Held Featuring Experts in their Fields of Taxes, Economics, and other Policy Leaders
– Your Association Accomplishments in May
– Why Income Tax Rates Matter – The Numbers Behind the 2020 Census
– Cannon’s Canon: Call the Claim “The Rich Don’t Pay Their Fair Share of Taxes” What it is – A Big Lie
– Preeminent Conference on Taxes to Be Held May 13, 2021
– Your Association Accomplishments in April
– 2021 Legislative Scorecard Released
– My Corner: Retiring After 44 Years
– Cannon’s Canon: Advancing Clean Energy in a Pro-Growth, Taxpayer-Friendly Way
– Taxpayers Association Asks U.S. Treasury for Guidance on New Federal Law’s Effect on State Tax Cuts
– Association Examined 28 Taxes and Fees in Brand New Booklet, Fast Tax
– State Auditor’s Office Releases New Dashboard Examining Education Funding from a Revolutionary New Approach
– Your Association Accomplishments in March
– How Will Your Taxes Change Now the 2021 General Session is Over?
– My Corner: Tales from the Legislature
– Cannon’s Canon – The Insane Asylum of California Tax Policy Is why Businesses and Residents Are Fleeing to States Like Utah
– Your Association Accomplishments in February
– Basing Transportation Funding on Users Fees Heats up Discussion During 2021 Session
– My Corner: The Evolution of Legislative Process, Public Access and Lobbying
– Cannon’s Canon – 2021 – The Year of the Tax Cut
– Per-Pupil Spending Cracks $10,000 Annually, According to New Association Report
– Utah Legislature Adapts to the Times. Learn How to Get Involved in This Year’s Session
– Your Association Accomplishments in January
– Tax Cuts for Families, Eliminating Burden on Small Business, and Transparency to Property Tax Increases are Ready for the 2021 Legislative Session
– My Corner: The Power of Principles vs. the Power of the Tribe: Why Policymakers Sometimes Yield to Pressure
– 2021 Legislative Outlook Conference to Focus on Maintaining Utah’s Competitiveness and Bringing Tax Relief to All Utahns
– Your Association Accomplishments in December
– Wireless Taxes and Government Fees Keep Increasing, and Utahns Pay Far Higher than the National Average
– My Corner: Learning from the Past, Looking to the Future
– 2020 Ballot Featured State and Local Tax Issues Which Will Affect Taxpayers for Years to Come
– Interim Committees Discuss Tax Relief for Seniors, Limiting Tax Increment Financing Participation for School Districts
– Your Association Accomplishments in November
– Tax Relief Long Overdue for Utahns
– My Corner: Constitutional Amendment G Will Protect Education Funding During Lean Years
– Demystifying Utah’s Property Tax Law and Why We Have the Best Property Tax Laws in the Nation
– Cannon’s Canon: Finding Free Market Solutions to Address Climate Change
– Your Association Accomplishments in October
– Another Utah City Looking to Wade into the Mire that is Municipal Fiber
– My Corner: COVID-19: Utah State Tax Commission Works to Ease Tax Issues for Taxpayers
– While Utah’s Tax Structure Remains One of the Best in the Nation, Utah Remains at a Disadvantage Due to Federal Stubbornness
– Interim Committee Examines Sales Tax Exemptions, Taxpayers Association Urges Against Tax Pyramiding
– Your Association Accomplishments in September
– Second Utah City Withdraws from UAMPS Small Modular Nuclear Reactor
– My Corner: Utah Sets National Example by Avoiding Political Polarization
– Utah’s Tax Policy Continues to See National Accolades
– Your Association Accomplishments in August
– Utah City Councils Must Opt-Out of Small Modular Nuclear Reactor Project Before September 14th Deadline
– My Corner: The Pandemic Which Prompted the Teachers Union Tiger to Change Its Stripes
– Annual Report Finds Utahns Spend $643 Per Person on City Government on Average
– How to Appeal Your Property Tax Assessment
– Your Association Accomplishments in July
– During a Recession, the Wrong Thing to Do is Raise Taxes: More than 35 Utah Entities Looking to do Just That
– My Corner: Economist Stephen Moore: Utah Should Reduce or Eliminate the Income Tax
– Cannon’s Canon: Utah’s Sales Tax Revenue Surprisingly Resilient During the Pandemic
– Responses to COVID-19 Dominate Taxes Now Conference Presentations
– Your Association Accomplishments in June
– Utah Legislature Set to Examine Sales Tax Exemptions, Expanding Uses of Taxes During Interim
– My Corner: Utah Legislature Sets the Pace for Fiscal Responsibility in Rough Economic Times
– Cannon’s Canon: Individual Income Tax Rates Across the Nation – Utah Needs to be More Competitive
– Utah’s Recent Sales Tax Reform Efforts and Sales Taxes Across the Nation
– Your Association Accomplishments in May
– Utah Legislature Doubles Down on Taxing Business Inputs in Series of Special Sessions
– My Corner: Tax Increment Financing: Stealing from School Children?
– Cannon’s Canon: Updated Unemployment Claims: How Does Utah Fare?
– Utah Taxpayers Association Releases Spending and Revenue from 112 Charter Schools
– Your Association Accomplishments in April
– Mixed Legislative Session Attempts Tax Reform, Adds Taxes to Business Inputs, and Increases Transparency
– My Corner: Karl N. Snow Jr: Good Government Doesn’t Just Happen, It Has a Designer
– Cannon’s Canon: What Will Be the Consequences for Utah from Coronavirus?
– Utah Taxpayers Association Releases 2020 Legislative Scorecard, Announced ‘Friend of the Taxpayer’ Awards
– Sobering Statistics on Unemployment: How Does Utah Look?
– Your Association Accomplishments in March
– 2020 General Session Looking to Make Major Tax Impacts for Families and Businesses
– My Corner: Just When You Thought It Couldn’t Get Any Worse
– Cannon’s Canon: The Truth on Income Taxes
– Utah Ranks Fourth Lowest in Federal Aid, Still Receives 24% of Statewide Budget from Federal Government
– Utah’s Corporate Tax Rate Stay Competitive in 2019
– Your Association Accomplishments in February
– 2020 Legislative Session Begins, Tax Issues Still Percolating
– My Corner: If a Republic is Better than a Democracy, Why Did 152,000 Utah Voters say the Legislature got Tax Reform Wrong?
– States Continue to Look to Utah as they Reform their Tax Structure
– Utah Spends Nearly $10,000 per Student on Average, According to Latest School Spending Report
– Utah’s Corporate Tax Rate Stay Competitive in 2019
– Your Association Accomplishments in January
– Utah Legislature Acts on Tax Reform at Special Session, Includes $160 to $200 Million Net Tax Cut
– My Corner: The Legislature Has Accomplished Major Tax Reform, Now it’s Time to Do Right by Utah’s Forgotten Economic Region
– Online Remote Sales Tax Collections (Wayfair) Getting Stronger – Now $111 Million and Growing
– 2020 Legislative Outlook Conference to Focus on Maintaining Utah’s Competitiveness and Implementation of Tax Modernization Legislation
– Utah’s State and Local Government Tax Burden Falls Below National Median
– Utah’s Property Taxes Continue to Be Recognized as One of the Best in the Nation
– Your Association Accomplishments in December
– Tax Task Force Moves Closer to a Final Proposal, as Your Taxpayers Association Calls for a More Significant Tax Cut
– My Corner: Time for a Dose of Reality on Education Reform and Funding
– Cannon’s Canon: The Hits Keep on Comin’ – A $200 Million Tax Cut is the Right Thing for Utah
– Interim Committee Moves on Improving Utah Business Climate; Cell Phone Fees Examined as Utah Ranks 5th Highest in the Nation
– The Average Utah Taxpayer Coughs Up $926 Annually to County Government
– Utah Taxpayers Association Elects New Board of Directors, Officers for 2020
– Your Association Accomplishments in November
– Utah Efforts at Tax Reform Begin to Move Forward
– My Corner: Inside Utah’s Legislative Process: Strength to Create Prosperity, Weakness Which Could Spell Disaster
– Cannon’s Canon: The Missing Part of the Conversation on Sales Tax on Food
– Are Utahns Tired of School Districts Building “Taj Mahals”?
– Utah Drops in Business Climate Index Ranking
– Utah Taxpayers Association Presents Tax Issues in Front of Nationwide Panel in Washington, D.C.
– Your Association Accomplishments in October
– Utah’s Property Tax Truth in Taxation Law is Threatened at Home While it Becomes a Model for Other States
– My Corner: Utah’s Ugly Little Secret about Public Education Funding
– Tax Task Force Examined Increasing the Gas Tax, Road Usage Charge, and Earmarks for Transportation as it Closes In on Recommendations
– Utah Taxpayers Association Takes Positions on November Bond Proposals
– Your Association Accomplishments in September
– Tax Restructuring and Equalization Task Force Begins to Weigh Options, Examines Food Sales Tax and Reducing the Income Tax
– My Corner: Utah’s 51st Rank in Spending Per Student – A Flawed Metric
– Second Quarter Remote Sales Tax Revenue Estimates Are In – How are the Numbers Shaking Out?
– How Utah Can Get an “A” on the COST State Sales Tax Scorecard: COST Warns Against Tax Pyramiding
– Your Association Accomplishments in August
– Are Your Taxes Increasing? 57 Local Governments are Looking to Increase your Property Taxes
– My Corner: ‘Don’t Tax Me; Don’t Tax Thee; Tax the Fellow Behind the Tree’
– Not all Property Valuation Notices are Created Equal – Notices Can Vary Wildly Between Counties
– Cannon’s Canon: Fiscal Year 2019 Numbers are In – Sales Tax Grows Faster than Inflation and Population Growth for th 9th Straight Year
– Your Association Accomplishments in July
– City Government Takes $635 from Every Man, Woman, and Child on Average
– My Corner: What Every Taxpayer Needs to Know about Utah’s Current Tax Reform Process
– Jonathan Williams Says Utah Won’t Be Number One for Economic Outlook much Longer Unless Bold Changes are Made
– School Districts Take $469 Million from Students Under Pressure from Cities and Counties that Look to Spur Economic Development
– More than Half of All Businesses in Utah are Exempt from the Personal Property Tax Following Action Taken during the 2019 Session
– Your Association Accomplishments in June
– Cannon’s Canon: Shout it From the Rooftops – There is Plenty of Room for an Income Tax Cut
– My Corner: Teacher Salary Hikes without Conditions Reveal School Boards’ Lack of Vision
– Online Remote Sales Tax Data (Wayfair) Starts to Roll In
– “Why Must This Be Done?” Panelists Discuss Basis and Answers to State Tax Reform
– Taxes Now Conference Attendees Told to “Act Boldly and Implement Slowly” When Considering State Tax Reform
– Your Association Accomplishments in May
– Cannon’s Canon: Cutting the Income Tax Rate is the Right Move for Utah – Op-Ed
– My Corner: Bright Spots in Educational Outcomes Must be Scaled Systemwide
– Utah Taxpayers Association Celebrates Utah’s #1 Ranking for 12th Year in a Row for Economic Outlook
– Canyons School District Proposed $50,000 Starting Teacher Salary with Property Tax Hike
– Americans Pay 29% of their Income to Taxes, According to New Report
– Your Association Accomplishments in April
April 2019 Newsletter
– 2019 Session: There’s Still Plenty of Work to Do in the Coming Months
– My Corner: The Importance of the People’s House
– Association Released 2019 Legislative Scorecard, Announces “Friends of the Taxpayer”
– Cannon’s Canon: Other States Are Nipping at Our Heels in Income Tax Cuts
– 2019 School Spending Report Shows Significant Administrative Hiring Spree
– Your Association Accomplishments in March
March 2019 Newsletter
– Sales Taxes on Services: Killing the Goose that Lays the Golden Egg
– My Corner: Tax Reform: First, Do No Harm
– 2019 Legislative Watchlist: What, How, and Where to Watch Tax Bills
– Utah’s 15% Cell Phone Taxes to Increase?
– Your Association Accomplishments in February
February 2019 Newsletter
– Cutting the Income Tax Rate: The Right Thing to Do
– My Corner: Should the Legislature End the Double Taxation on Personal Property for all Taxpayers?
– 2019 Legislative Watchlist: What, How, and Where to Watch Tax Bills
– Tax Commission Agrees to Work with Your Taxpayers Association to Re-Examine Penalties for Failure to Collect Sales Taxes
– Over 120 Attendees Help Make 2019 Legislative Outlook Conference a Success
– Your Association Accomplishments in January
January 2019 Newsletter
– Following 2018 Successes, Utah 2.0 Moves into Next Phase
– My Corner: Will the Legislature Allow Automatic Property Tax Increases?
– Expanding the Sales Tax Base: Whose Ox Gets Gored?
– Cannon’s Canon: Recession Coming? Listen to Jonathan Ball and Bond Insiders
– Your Association Accomplishments in December
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Post-Pandemic, How High Are State and Local Taxes in Utah and the Nation?
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Money Talks, and It Says, “Leave California”
This Thanksgiving, I enjoyed 70-degree weather on the coast of California. 48 hours later, I was driving home to Utah in a blizzard wondering why we’d left the Golden State, and why in the world Californians would ever want to move. The answer: state taxes. In 2023,...