Elim Garak
Veteran
The “millionaires tax,” which went into effect for the first time last year, is set to bring in billions.
State officials announced Monday that the surtax on high earners had generated more than $1.8 billion in revenue this fiscal year, with three months left to go, according to the State House News Service.
This means state officials could have millions of dollars to spend on transportation and education initiatives.
Any additional money raised beyond the $1 billion already budgeted would go to a reserve account, where state policymakers can ask for one-time investments in projects or programs.
The SHNS reported that the revenue from the tax is already $800 million more than the Legislature and Gov. Maura Healey planned to spend in surtax revenue for all of the fiscal year 2024.
The Department of Revenue won’t certify the official amount raised until later this year.
However, the estimates supported claims that the surtax would generate significant revenue for the state, despite fears that it would drive out some of its wealthiest residents.
In 2022, voters approved the ballot initiative that levies an additional 4 percent tax on annual earnings over $1 million.
“Opponents of the Fair Share Amendment claimed that multi-millionaires would flee Massachusetts rather than pay the new tax, and they are being proven wrong every day,” Andrew Farnitano, a spokesperson for Raise Up Massachusetts, the union-backed group that pushed the 2022 ballot initiative, told the Boston Globe.
“With this money from the ultra-rich, we can do even more to improve our public schools and colleges, invest in roads, bridges, and public transit, and start building an economy that works for everyone,” Farnitano said.
But Massachusetts has struggled with residents leaving the state recently, taking their taxable income with them.
The announcement from the latest DOR quarterly report, described during Senate proceedings, is welcome news for budget writers who had been seeing declines in tax revenues for months.
State tax collections have lagged behind projections for most of the 2024 fiscal year, SHNS reported, even after Healey implemented spending cuts.
According to an analysis by the Pioneer Institute, Massachusetts lost $4.3 billion in adjusted gross income in 2021, 40 percent more than the prior year. The data shows that nearly 25,200 more tax filers had moved out of the state than moved in.
“Whatever short-term financial benefit the state will receive from the income surtax will be outweighed by the long-term negative effect this tax is having on the state,” Paul Craney, a spokesperson for the conservative-leaning Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, told the Globe.
Source: Here's how much the new ‘millionaires tax’ has raised this year (it's a lot)
State officials announced Monday that the surtax on high earners had generated more than $1.8 billion in revenue this fiscal year, with three months left to go, according to the State House News Service.
This means state officials could have millions of dollars to spend on transportation and education initiatives.
Any additional money raised beyond the $1 billion already budgeted would go to a reserve account, where state policymakers can ask for one-time investments in projects or programs.
The SHNS reported that the revenue from the tax is already $800 million more than the Legislature and Gov. Maura Healey planned to spend in surtax revenue for all of the fiscal year 2024.
The Department of Revenue won’t certify the official amount raised until later this year.
However, the estimates supported claims that the surtax would generate significant revenue for the state, despite fears that it would drive out some of its wealthiest residents.
In 2022, voters approved the ballot initiative that levies an additional 4 percent tax on annual earnings over $1 million.
“Opponents of the Fair Share Amendment claimed that multi-millionaires would flee Massachusetts rather than pay the new tax, and they are being proven wrong every day,” Andrew Farnitano, a spokesperson for Raise Up Massachusetts, the union-backed group that pushed the 2022 ballot initiative, told the Boston Globe.
“With this money from the ultra-rich, we can do even more to improve our public schools and colleges, invest in roads, bridges, and public transit, and start building an economy that works for everyone,” Farnitano said.
But Massachusetts has struggled with residents leaving the state recently, taking their taxable income with them.
The announcement from the latest DOR quarterly report, described during Senate proceedings, is welcome news for budget writers who had been seeing declines in tax revenues for months.
State tax collections have lagged behind projections for most of the 2024 fiscal year, SHNS reported, even after Healey implemented spending cuts.
According to an analysis by the Pioneer Institute, Massachusetts lost $4.3 billion in adjusted gross income in 2021, 40 percent more than the prior year. The data shows that nearly 25,200 more tax filers had moved out of the state than moved in.
“Whatever short-term financial benefit the state will receive from the income surtax will be outweighed by the long-term negative effect this tax is having on the state,” Paul Craney, a spokesperson for the conservative-leaning Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, told the Globe.
Source: Here's how much the new ‘millionaires tax’ has raised this year (it's a lot)
