Connecticut bears 2nd-highest tax burden in US, accounting group says

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Connecticut has the second-highest taxpayer burden in the nation, according to a report released this week by a think tank.

The state’s tax burden — the amount each individual taxpayer would have to pay the state’s treasury for the state to be debt-free — is $49,000, according to Truth in Accounting (TIA), a Chicago-based nonprofit organization that analyzes government financial reporting.

TIA recently released its annual “Financial State of the States” report, which ranks states based on their financial health according to Fiscal Year 2015 data. Connecticut’s burden inched up slightly from $48,600 in last year’s report.

Connecticut was one of the states dubbed a “sinkhole state” by the group, meaning it was among the five states with the highest taxpayer burden.

Only New Jersey had a greater taxpayer burden than Connecticut, at $59,400. The other states rounding out the top five were Illinois at $45,500, Kentucky at $33,700, and Massachusetts at $30,300.

A high taxpayer burden could negatively impact people who live in Connecticut, said TIA Founder and CEO Sheila Weinberg.

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