HARTFORD – The State of Connecticut collects money from 347 separate taxes, fees, and transfer payments, according to a new report released by the Yankee Institute. The report lists every separate source of revenue collected by the state, ranging from the state income tax ($6.4 billion) to private donations ($0) for fiscal 2009.
The top 15:
1 Personal Income Tax $6,385,856,437
2 General Sales And Use Tax $3,194,863,688
3 ARRA-Increased Medicaid FMAP $2,579,965,883
4 Medical Assistance-Title XIX $2,579,965,883
5 Corporation Tax $566,017,816
6 Gasoline Tax $369,068,334
7 Cigarette Distributor Tax $312,403,962
8 Dependent Children $290,246,485
9 Lottery Ticket Payment $283,000,000
10 Inheritance and Estate Tax $238,336,664
11 Mohegan Sun Gaming Payments $200,651,342
12 Mashantucket Gaming Payments $177,153,621
13 Motor Vehicle Licenses $175,476,461
14 Electric And Power Company Tax $153,897,278
15 Administration-Social Services $144,099,512
The full report is available here.
This list also includes revenue from sources like non-returned bottle deposits ($6 million), pistol permits ($1.1 million), permits to sell fireworks ($19,100), registration of hypnotists ($8,010), licenses to trap animals ($5,940), and pool inspection fees ($1,550).
“Most of the taxes Connecticut collects fall on employers and small business owners in the form of licenses or registration fees. There’s a tendency to think that taxes on corporations or small businesses are paid for by corporations or businesses, but that’s not true. Businesses don’t pay taxes. People do. These taxes are just passed on to regular consumers in the form of higher prices,” said Fergus Cullen, Executive Director of the Yankee Institute.
“The same is true of money transferred from the Federal government for things like Medicaid or aid to dependent children. That money’s not free. It comes from Connecticut taxpayers, who are also paying interest on that money because so much of it is borrowed,” Cullen said.
The Yankee Institute supports a simpler, flatter tax system with fewer taxes. The state could eliminate the 200 smallest taxes and fees for just $22 million in revenue on a $19 billion budget.
