(The Center Square) – Ohio ranks as one of the states with the highest tax rates in a new report that also showed a higher percentage of people across the country are more worried about inflation than tax rates.
WalletHub, a personal finance website, recently released its annual report on states with the highest and lowest tax rates, along with its 2023 taxpayer survey. Ohio ranked as the state with the seventh highest taxes in the nation.
The report compared state and local taxes in the 50 states and the District of Columbia to national medians.
Ohio ranked 45th overall.
“Ohio has the seventh highest taxes in the country. This is mostly due to its income tax, which takes up over 3% of the income of a middle-income earner – eighth biggest nationwide,” WalletHub Analyst Jill Gonzalez said. “On top of this, the real estate and sales and excise taxes are among the highest 20 in the country as well.”
The tax report also pointed out low income taxes does not always translate into low overall taxes, offering the state of Washington as an example.
Washington does not have an income tax but people in Washington still spend more than 8% of their annual income on sales and excise taxes.
WalletHub’s taxpayer survey showed 73% of the people responding said government does not spend their tax dollars wisely and 72% think their current tax rate is too high.
The survey also showed nearly half the people would rather have jury duty than do their taxes, while another 36% would rather talk to their kids about sex and another 26% would miss a connecting flight.
And, 39% of those responding said they would move to a different country for a tax-free future, while another 37% said they would get an IRS tattoo to not have to pay taxes.
