Growls

Yesterday’s Wall Street Journal contained a “review & outlook” article, which looked at migration patterns, and whether taxes are a motivator in why people move from one state to another. The column begins:

“An old adage says high taxes don't redistribute income, they redistribute people. For new evidence look no further than migration patterns within the United States, as documented in a new survey by the moving company United Van Lines.”

While admitting that people move for a host of reasons, they make a strong case “to conclude that taxes are also a motivator is because the eight states without an income tax are stealing talent from other states.”

The column has a warming for politicians who seem to think nothing of adding a tax here or “enhancing” a tax there. The following two paragraphs should be required reading by our legislative solons not only in Richmond but by Arlington’s grand poohbahs as well.

• “Politicians who think taxes don't matter might want to explain the Dakotas. North Dakota ranked second worst in out-migration last year, while South Dakota ranked in the top 10 as a destination. The two are similar in most regards, with one large difference: North Dakota has an income tax and South Dakota doesn't.”

• “Our friends on the left say Americans are willing to pay more taxes to get better government services, but their migration patterns reveal the opposite. Governors would be wise to heed these interstate migration trends as they try to cope with what may be one of the worst years in recent memory for state finances. The people who tend to be the most mobile in American society are the educated and motivated -- in other words, the taxpaying class. Tax them too much, and you'll soon find they aren't there to tax at all.”

Carpe Diem makes much the same point. A few reader comments are especially interesting.