Richard S. Davis

Flat revenue forecast, 4-year budget outlook remains grim

The official state revenue forecast released today is little changed from the September report. Overall changes to the revenue forecast are slight. Forecasted revenue for the current biennium has been increased by $8 million, with a $31 million positive variance in collections since the September forecast partially offset by a weaker forecast going forward. Forecasted […]

From fiscal cliff to affordable care act, plenty of post-election unfinished business

Remember when elections settled things? OK, I don’t either. But there’s more than the usual clutter of unresolved issues on the agenda this year. The Los Angeles Times has a nice roundup of the states of health care, as more Republican governors opt not to set up the state exchanges prescribed by the Affordable Care […]

Washington ranks 28th in Tax Foundation new tax burden report

State and local taxes in Washington amount to 9.3 percent of state income, according to a new analysis by the Tax Foundation, ranking the state No. 28 in state-local tax burden. The Tax Foundation estimates for 2010 differ from most governmental reports, in that the Foundation accounts for “tax exporting.” This is most dramatic in […]

Area Development magazine's "top states for doing business" leans to the Southeast

Area Development Online, a site and facility planning publication, recently posted its annual “top states for doing business” rankings. The top 10: 1.  Texas 2.  South Carolina 3.  Georgia 4.  Alabama 5.  North Carolina 6.  Louisiana 7.  Tennessee 8.  Indiana 9.  Mississippi 10.  Oklahoma The rankings stem from a survey of location consultants. The magazine offers short profiles of the top states (No. 1 Texas […]

Washington ranks 6th in Tax Foundation's index of business tax climates

The Tax Foundation today released its annual study of state business tax climates. As usual, Washington ranks in the top 10 best. We were 6th this year, 7th last year, and 8th the year before. As we wrote last year, regarding the 2012 rankings, the TF methodology favors states without an income tax.   The […]

September revenue forecast unchanged

Today’s revenue forecast remains essentially unchanged. From the press release: In the three months since the June forecast, U.S. economic activity has generally been in line with the baseline scenario. We continue to see slow growth, high unemployment and weak confidence. Despite the relatively small changes in the economic forecast, the level of downside uncertainty […]

Regulatory reform – a long way to go

Emily wrote previously about the performance audit of state regulatory reform efforts. In my column today I take a closer look at the findings. Despite good intentions and serious efforts, the desired results have not materialized. The rising tide of regulation rolls in as state officials, like Canute, ineffectually order the sea to recede. We […]

Seattle ranks No. 40 on new economic index

According to the On Numbers Economic Index, Seattle ranks 40th in the nation, well behind top performers Oklahoma City, Autin and Omaha. The index is a product of American City Business Journals, which publishes regional business journals across the country, including the Puget Sound Buxiness Journal. The American economy is strongest in the heartland. Oklahoma […]

Tax limits alone won’t solve Washington’s budget problems. Davis column in today’s Herald. http://tinyurl.com/9enfhnk

Discovering interactive tax calculators at National Taxpayers Conference

Just finished hearing a great presentation by Nick Kasprak, programmer and analyst at the Tax Foundation. he was leadoff speaker at the NTC conference, held this year in Washington, D.C. He showed us a number of user-friendly and useful tools to help understand state and local tax policies: net migration, performance against state expenditure limits, […]