Best Face: Oregon Among Least Regressive

            The Oregon tax environment is not progressive.  The best one can say is that it is one of the least regressive.  A “Distributional Analysis of the Tax Systems in All 50 States” (and DC, too) done by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy compares the taxes paid as a percent of income by the poorest 20% and the wealthiest 1%.  In Oregon, the poorest 20% pay 8.3% and the wealthiest 1% pay 7.0% of their respective incomes.   Washington, DC is the least regressive with near parity – 6.6% for the poorest and 6.3% for the wealthiest.  The dubious honor of most regressive goes to Washington state where the poorest pay 16.9% and the wealthiest pay 2.8%.

            ITEP aggregates personal income, property and consumption (sales and excise) taxes in each state to make the comparisons.  The table mostly bears out their conclusion that “In almost all states, the poor pay a higher proportion of their income in taxes than wealthy residents do.”   Actually, according to the data in the report, not one among the 50 states and the District of Columbia shows the progressive profile of the rich paying a higher share of their income than the poor.