By Brent Johnson | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

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New Jersey yet again has won a distinction it likely doesn't want.

An annual report from the Tax Foundation, a conservative Washington think tank, declared the Garden State has the worst tax climate in the country for business, thanks to its high property, corporate, and individual income tax rates.

The group has placed New Jersey at the bottom of all 50 U.S. states every year since 2015.

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Here's why New Jersey is dead last in business climate again:

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What the group said about New Jersey

The Tax Foundation — whose board contains former Republican lawmakers — says New Jersey is "hampered by some of the highest property tax burdens in the country, recently implemented the second highest-rate corporate income tax in the country, levies an inheritance tax, and maintains some of the nation’s worst-structured individual income taxes."

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One step forward, one step back?

The group does give New Jersey credit for phasing out its estate tax last year and reducing its sales tax from 6.875 to 6.625 percent. That was part of a deal then-Gov. Chris Christie, a Republican, cut with the Democrat-controlled state Legislature to raise the state's gas tax 23 cents a gallon.

But the group faults state leaders for instituting a new personal tax bracket — at a rate of 10.75 percent — for those who made $5 million or more. That's the third-highest in the nation.

The group also calls out leaders for raising the state's corporate income tax to 11.5 percent on companies with income of $1 million or more — the second-highest in the country.

Both changes were part of a compromise new Gov. Phil Murphy reached with his fellow Democrats who run the Legislature. It was an 11th hour deal that narrowly avoided a state government shutdown.

The state budget that Murphy signed in July raises taxes by more than $1 billion to help pay for increases to public transportation, education, government-worker pensions, and more.

Conservative critics frequently slam Murphy for his tax policies. But Murphy says his goal is to give New Jerseyans back a lot for what they pay.

"I think our real objective is that we're gonna be once again what we used to be: a good-value state," the rookie governor said in March. "Folks will say it's worth it. 'I pay a premium in New Jersey, but I get a lot back.'"

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Where New Jersey's taxes rank

The report ranks states from 1 (best) to 50 (worst). It ranks New Jersey 47th in corporate business tax, 50th in individual income tax, 45th in sales tax, and 48th in property tax.

The average property tax bill in the state was $8,690 in 2017 — the highest of any state.

The Tax Foundation said the recent sales tax cut helped New Jersey jump one spot in that category, while the estate tax repeal bumped it up two spots on that list.

But the group says the state's income tax rate change dropped it two slots to last place in that category, while its corporate tax rate caused it to fall five slots on that list.

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Graphic by the Tax Foundation

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The top 10 states

1. Wyoming

2. Alaska

3. South Dakota

4. Florida

5. Montana

6. New Hampshire

7. Oregon

8. Utah

9. Nevada

10. Indiana

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The Tax Foundation says a common factor among many states listed above is "the absence of a major tax."

"There are several states that do without one or more of the major taxes: the corporate income tax, the individual income tax, or the sales tax," the group says.

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The bottom 10 states

41. Vermont

42. Ohio

43. Minnesota

44. Louisiana

45. Iowa

46. Arkansas

47. Connecticut

48. New York

49. California

50. New Jersey

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The Tax Foundation says many of these states suffer from a number of similar "afflictions" — "complex, nonneutral taxes with comparatively high rates."

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State Senate President Stephen Sweeney, D-Gloucester.

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What lawmakers say about the study

State Senate President Stephen Sweeney, D-Gloucester, said the report shows New Jersey's tax clime is troublesome.

"We need to fix it," Sweeney told reporters Thursday. "It's not good to be ranked 50th."

Sweeney said this showed the need to make changes like the ones suggested by a panel he's commissioned to find ways to save the state's government money.

Meanwhile, state Senate Minority Leader Tom Kean Jr., R-Monmouth, blamed Democrats.

"Nobody should be shocked that raising business taxes and income taxes by more than $1 billion would hurt New Jersey's competitiveness," Kean Jr. said in a statement. "What's shocking, however, is that New Jersey Democrats fail to see how their destructive policies hurt middle-class families who may lose jobs, raises, and an opportunity to build financial security."

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A rebuttal from the left

Liberal think tank New Jersey Policy Perspective pushed back against the report.

Sheila Reynertson, a senior policy analyst with that group, dismissed it as a "so-called study" that is "not a good faith measure of New Jersey's economy but a tool for business lobbyists to push for lower corporate taxes."

She added "this strategy falls short for two reasons."

"First, the most immediate impact of lower corporate taxes is less revenue to invest in the important assets that all businesses depend upon to move goods and services," Reynertson said in a statement. "Second, it is well established that business leaders consider a long list of factors — like location, workforce, infrastructure, and quality of life - far more important than taxes when exploring new business investments."

NJPP also said the state's "business tax climate" is different from the state's business climate. The group noted that New Jersey is home to 22 Fortune 500 companies — more than than any of the top 10 states in the Tax Foundation's report.

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READ THE FULL REPORT

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RELATED COVERAGE:

Where New Jersey ranked last year

How much you'll pay in new taxes, and what you'll get for it

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NJ Advance Media staff writers Samantha Marcus and Jonathan D. Salant contributed to this report.

Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @johnsb01. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.