In several of these states – including Arizona, New York and New Jersey – the top rates shown in the chart below were adopted in just the last few years, in response to statewide, grassroots campaigns. already tax high-income filers at top rates very near to or above 9 percent. While investments funded with Fair Share revenue clearly would benefit communities throughout the Commonwealth, a top rate of 9 percent would compare well with top rates in other states.

Would Fair Share make Massachusetts an extreme outlier in terms of top tax rates? The result would be a top marginal tax rate in Massachusetts of 9 percent (our 5 percent standard income tax rate + the 4 percent surtax). Income below $1 million would continue to be taxed at the 5 percent rate currently applied to all income in Massachusetts. If approved by voters in November of 2022, Fair Share would place an additional 4 percent tax on the portion of a filer’s personal income above $1 million a year. One high-income tax option now on the table - dubbed the “Fair Share Amendment” - would generate at least $2 billion a year in new, ongoing revenue. How much would the “millionaire tax” raise and how would it work? The targeted, sustained investments made possible with the resulting revenue would have a still larger impact on economic and racial equity throughout the Commonwealth. Applying a higher tax rate to very high incomes would help turn our tax system right side up, while advancing efforts to achieve racial equity in Massachusetts.

With Massachusetts’s upside down tax system, these households currently pay a far smaller share of their income in state and local taxes than low- and middle-income households do. Why raise the new revenue from very high-income filers?Īs a matter of fairness and economic commonsense, it is important that the much-needed new revenue come from our state’s highest-income households – the same group that has gotten even richer during the pandemic and which also is disproportionately white. This is an injustice we can and must correct. Due to a centuries-long history of systemic racism, these groups have much lower average household incomes and continue to be excluded from many economic opportunities. When making these investments, it is especially important that the Commonwealth prioritize the needs of Black, brown and Latinx communities. Likewise, investments in affordable childcare, well-resourced K-12 schools, and opportunities for debt-free vocational and higher education will propel our people and our communities forward. These include investments in our transportation and education systems, two of the essential building blocks for individual, community, and statewide economic success.įor example, Massachusetts has a large backlog of repairs we need to make to our roads, public transit systems and schools – problems that will only get worse if we don’t tackle them now. In order to build an economically and racially just Commonwealth, it is necessary for our state government to collect enough revenue to pay for key investments – ones that will create new opportunities for all our people and allow every community to thrive. Why do we need new tax revenue in Massachusetts?

New york income tax brackets 2021