In a surprise to no one, New York has one of the nation’s highest combined average state and local sales taxes, according to the Tax Foundation’s 2017 study.
At present, the state’s combined sales tax is 8.49 percent, the highest in the region, compared to neighboring Pennsylvania’s 6.34 percent, Vermont’s 6.18 percent, Massachusetts 6.25 percent and New Jersey’s 6.85 percent.
“State and local governments should be cautious about raising rates too high relative to their neighbors because doing so will yield less revenue than expected or, in extreme cases, revenue losses despite the higher tax rate,” the study authors, Jared Walczak and Scott Drenkard, note.
The study’s release is apt, given that New York is experiencing slow sales tax growth, and Gov. Andrew Cuomo is pushing a sales tax on Internet marketplaces such as Amazon.
