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(The Tax Foundation)

Update: Calculator: How much must you earn at a job in another state to maintain your quality of life?

Michiganders get more bang for their buck than the national average, according to a recent analysis, but that means those moving out of state have to make more to keep their same standard of living.

The Tax Foundation Monday released information on the relative purchasing power of $100 in each state, based on U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis numbers.

The Tax Foundation, a nonpartisan research foundation based out of Washington, D.C., measured the real value of $100 in each state, looking at average prices for similar goods. In Michigan, $100 actually buys $105.93 worth of goods.

That difference has income implications. A $50,000 salary in Michigan actually equates to about $52,965 in purchasing power. That same $50,000 salary in California would equate to $44,285 in purchasing power. So to move to California and maintain the same standard of living, a Michigander would actually have to make $59,800.

MOVING STATES, MOVING SALARIES

If you make $50,000 pre-tax in Michigan, here's how much pre-tax money you'd need to make to maintain the same standard of living in other states:

• California: $59,800

• New York: $61,118

• Texas: $51,105

• Oregon: $52,331

• Illinois: $53,284

• Washington, D.C.: $62,606

• Florida: $52,331





In terms of prices of goods in other states, that same $100 buys you the least in Washington, D.C., where it gets $84.60 worth of goods. In Hawaii it’s $85.32, in New York it’s $86.66, New Jersey is $87.64 and California is $88.57.

So where does that money go the furthest? In Mississippi it gets $115.74 worth of goods, Arkansas $114.16 and both Missouri and Alabama $113.51.

The Tax Foundation in a blog on the subject called regional price differences “strikingly large.” The gap between the lowest-price and highest-price state is almost 40 percent.

There are some policy implications, according to the foundation. For instance, federal programs relying on income thresholds could be disproportionate, such as a welfare program. A person applying from a high cost area may be artificially boosted out of the income range, and a person applying for the same program in a low-cost state could be eligible even though they have greater purchasing power.

Emily Lawler is a Capital/Lansing business reporter for MLive. You can reach her at elawler@mlive.com, subscribe to her on Facebook or follow her on Twitter: @emilyjanelawler.