The exodus from blue states accelerates

[DKG]

The IRS data shows a net 105,000 people left Illinois in 2021, taking with them some $10.9 billion in AGI. That's up from $8.5 billion in 2020 and $6 billion in 2019. New York's income loss increased to $24.5 billion in 2021 from $19.5 billion in 2020 and $9 billion in 2019. California lost $29.1 billion in 2021, more than triple what it did in 2019.



By contrast, the lowest tax states added some $100 billion of income during the pandemic. Zero-income-tax Florida gained $39.2 billion—up from $23.7 billion in 2020 and $17.7 billion in 2019. About $9.8 billion of the total arrived from New York, $3.9 billion from Illinois, $3.7 billion from New Jersey and $3.5 billion from California.



Texas was another winner, attracting a net $10.9 billion in 2021, which follows a gain of $6.3 billion in 2020 and $4 billion in 2019. Californians represented more than half of Texas's income gain in 2021. The Golden State also sent $4.4 billion to Nevada, $2.7 billion to Arizona and $2 billion to Washington. Nevada and Washington don't tax wages, and Arizona is phasing out its income tax.



Illinois lost income to all of its neighboring states, but the biggest beneficiaries of its taxpayer flight were Florida, Texas, Indiana and Wisconsin. Mr. Pritzker can't blame lousy weather since it's not exactly balmy in Kenosha. Billionaire Ken Griffin cited Chicago's out-of-control crime last year as the reason he moved his hedge fund to Miami.



Raising taxes to pay for under-funded public worker pensions and bloated social programs doesn't help the Land of Lincoln attract talent. The same is true for other blue states. New York Democrats in April 2021 increased the combined state-and-local top income tax rate to 14.8% from 12.7%. It would have been a surprise if taxpayer flight hadn't increased that year.



A major problem for high-tax states is that their escapees often pay more in taxes than their newcomers. The IRS data shows that the taxpayers leaving Illinois and New York typically made about $30,000 to $40,000 more than those arriving. Of Illinois's total out-migration, 28% of the leavers made between $100,000 to $200,000 and 23% made $200,000 or more.



By contrast, the average return of a Florida newcomer in 2021 was about $150,000—more than double that of taxpayers who left. High earners spend more, which yields higher sales tax revenue. This helped Florida post a record $22 billion budget surplus last year. California is forecasting a $29.5 billion deficit.



All of this income migration helps explain why Florida and other low-tax states lead the country in job growth. Employment grew 4.5% in Florida and 4.3% in Texas over the past year compared to 2.5% in California and 2.2% in Illinois. In March the unemployment rate was 5.4% in New York City metro region, 5% in Los Angeles, 4.5% in Chicago versus 1.9% in Miami.

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Remember when Dems pilloried Ron DeSantis not following the authoritarian lead in lockdowns. Now that the fake pandemic is behind us, Florida gained $40 billion in revenue from new arrivals from states like Illinois, California, and New York.

[DKG]

Another disillusioned batch of more than 10,000 New Yorkers relinquished their driver's licenses for the Florida version in the first quarter of 2023, extending an ongoing exodus into the Sunshine State.



According to new figures from the Florida Department of Highway Safety, 10,824 Empire Staters swapped out their licenses in the first three months of this year.



In January, office occupancy in New York City was still only around 54%.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/illinois-j-b-pritzker-taxes-states-irs-ec3da356?mod=opinion_lead_pos1">https://www.wsj.com/articles/illinois-j ... _lead_pos1">https://www.wsj.com/articles/illinois-j-b-pritzker-taxes-states-irs-ec3da356?mod=opinion_lead_pos1

Banning gas stoves will not get New Yorkers to stay Governor Kathy Hochul.

[Lokmar]

Both my older kids moved to Florida. So did my mom and step dad. I've told my younger kids they need to GTFO of Illinois too.



The ONLY good news I've seen come out of Illinois in the last 10 years + is recently, there was an injunction issued against the commie gun ban last week.

[Herman]

Both my older kids moved to Florida. So did my mom and step dad. I've told my younger kids they need to GTFO of Illinois too.



The ONLY good news I've seen come out of Illinois in the last 10 years + is recently, there was an injunction issued against the commie gun ban last week.

I really like the way Florida is governed. But, it is too overpopulated for old Herman.

[Anonymous]

Both my older kids moved to Florida. So did my mom and step dad. I've told my younger kids they need to GTFO of Illinois too.



The ONLY good news I've seen come out of Illinois in the last 10 years + is recently, there was an injunction issued against the commie gun ban last week.

I really like the way Florida is governed. But, it is too overpopulated for old Herman.

I certainly didn't have any qualms about the way it was governed, until HB269 was inked. A time bomb waiting to happen, that bill.

[Herman]

I really like the way Florida is governed. But, it is too overpopulated for old Herman.

I certainly didn't have any qualms about the way it was governed, until HB269 was inked. A time bomb waiting to happen, that bill.

I did a Google search and it does not look that bad.

[Anonymous]

I certainly didn't have any qualms about the way it was governed, until HB269 was inked. A time bomb waiting to happen, that bill.

I did a Google search and it does not look that bad.

There's a loosely worded section in there which can be abused to the detriment of first amendment rights. And it will be. I don't know if it was left intentionally vague for that explicit purpose or if DeSantis was simply being clumsy, either way it is going to prove a sticking point for his election chances should he decide to declare a run for office.

[Herman]

I did a Google search and it does not look that bad.

There's a loosely worded section in there which can be abused to the detriment of first amendment rights. And it will be. I don't know if it was left intentionally vague for that explicit purpose or if DeSantis was simply being clumsy, either way it is going to prove a sticking point for his election chances should he decide to declare a run for office.

DeSantis is a fighter for the rights of the average man and woman, It won't be him that uses it against regular folks.

[Anonymous]

There's a loosely worded section in there which can be abused to the detriment of first amendment rights. And it will be. I don't know if it was left intentionally vague for that explicit purpose or if DeSantis was simply being clumsy, either way it is going to prove a sticking point for his election chances should he decide to declare a run for office.

DeSantis is a fighter for the rights of the average man and woman, It won't be him that uses it against regular folks.

Probably not, but leaving that door open for others to is sloppy at best. I think he did it for the brownie points personally. Last I checked, he had a lot of ground to make up in terms of in-party support if he chose to announce a run... and given the most recent move to allow Florida governors to run for the presidency without resigning their state duties first I won't be at all surprised if he announces a run in the next few weeks.



I still like the guy, but HB269 is a complete dealbreaker IMO.

[Herman]

No wonder folks are leaving California.



A group of parents are saying they'll boycott a Los Angeles elementary school's gay pride day set for next Friday and will keep their children "home and innocent" instead.



An Instagram page — Saticoy Elementary Parents — went up about a week ago in opposition to planned gay pride activities at Saticoy Elementary in North Hollywood, which includes kindergarteners through fifth-graders, the Los Angeles Times reported.