Eighty percent of Mississippi residents earn an income of less than $70,000. While that group makes up eighty percent (80%) of earners, they only hold forty-three percent (43%) of the state’s total income. Conversely, the top twenty percent (20%) of earners (with income over $70,000) hold fifty-seven percent (57%) of the state’s income. The state’s regressive tax system exacerbates this income gap by requiring lower income earners to pay more than their share of taxes.
The figure below shows that the top income group represents fifty-seven percent (57%) of the total income in the state but pay forty-nine percent (49%) of state and local taxes. Conversely, the bottom eighty percent (80%) of residents hold only forty-three percent (43%) of the state’s income, but pay fifty-one percent (51%) of the state and local taxes.
Estimated Share of Total Income and Share of State and Local Taxes Paid by Income Group in Mississippi (2007)
Source: MEPC analysis of data from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy
Author: Sara Miller,Senior Policy Analyst