SHOCK STUDY: Tax Hell Shows How New York Bleeds Families Dry

New York is No. 1 again. Taxpayers may want to hide their wallets.

The Empire State and its local governments collect more taxes per person than anywhere else in America, according to a new Citizens Budget Commission analysis, a dubious distinction arriving as New Yorkers continue packing up and heading for other states.

CBC’s newly released “Top of the Charts 4” found New York ranked No. 1 in state and local taxes per capita and No. 2 in government spending in fiscal year 2024. And it wasn’t even close.

New York collected 71% more taxes per person than the national average — and a whopping 22% more than second-place California. Tax collections measured against personal income were 46% above the national average.

The taxman hits from seemingly every direction.

CBC found New York collected the most personal income taxes per $1,000 of income in America, 94% above the national average, while also collecting the nation’s highest corporate taxes relative to state GDP.

Meanwhile, New York governments spent 44% more per resident than the national average, trailing only Alaska. CBC calculated New York could have saved a staggering $99 billion if it spent at New Jersey’s per-capita level.

Another ranking delivers an equally brutal verdict: the Tax Foundation puts New York dead last — No. 50 — for overall state tax competitiveness in 2026, including 50th for individual income taxes and 47th for property taxes.

And New Yorkers continue voting with moving trucks.

State Assembly economic data drawing on Census figures show New York suffered net domestic migration losses of about 138,000 people in 2025, following losses of roughly 130,000 in 2024, 179,000 in 2023 and 244,000 in 2022.

State tax data also show where many are going: Florida had a net gain of 21,176 tax returns from New York, followed by New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, South Carolina and Texas.

CBC warns the toxic combination of high taxes, high spending, high living costs and uneven public services threatens New York’s ability to retain residents and businesses. Its prescription is straightforward: hold the line on taxes — and preferably cut them.

For families already getting squeezed by housing, groceries, utilities and seemingly everything else, the numbers paint an ugly picture:

In New York, being No. 1 comes with one hell of a bill.