Florida TaxWatch celebrates Taxpayer Independence Day on Monday April 20. Taxpayer Independence Day is the first day in the calendar year that Florida taxpayers, on average, begin earning income that does not go toward federal, state and local taxes.
“Taxpayer Independence Day is certainly a celebration, but it truly shows Floridians the presence that different levels of government have in their daily lives, and in their paycheck,” said Dominic M. Calabro, President and CEO of Florida TaxWatch.
Federal tax burden has the largest impact on the date of Taxpayer Independence Day, as federal taxes comprise more than 69.3 percent of Floridians’ federal, state and local tax burden. For the average Floridian, state tax burden is 17 percent and local tax burden is 13.7 percent of their total tax bill.
Based on Floridians’ average personal income, state taxpayers must work 2 hours and 24 minutes each day to pay of their owed taxes, meaning workers do not begin earning wages for other expenses until 11:24 a.m. in a 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. workday.
Florida celebrates Taxpayer Independence Day before 20 other states and the nation as a whole, in part due to the fact that Florida is one of seven states without a state income tax. This year’s Taxpayer Independence Day comes later despite the Florida Legislature’s commitment to reducing taxes by nearly $500 million in 2014, mostly due to increased consumer spending and rising federal tax collections.
“Taxpayer Independence Day helps Floridians evaluate the cost of government and understand how our tax burden lines up with those across the nation,” said Dominic M. Calabro. “Taxpayer Independence Day proves that Florida is a taxpayer-friendly state, and that Floridians’ state and local tax burden remains low compared to the federal tax burden.”