Report: Out-migration cost Wisconsin $3.5 billion in taxes since 2015

The useful part

(The Center Square) – There's now a pierce tag for the people who have moved out of Wisconsin. Government released a report that says out-migration over the past decade has cost the state $3.5 billion in lost revenue. "Over the last 10 years, more than 900,000 filers have left the state, most of them moving to states with a flat or no income tax, taking more than $37 billion in income with them," the report stated.

How it works

• "This data shows the Wisconsin economy is missing out on billions of dollars because of its undesirable tax climate.
• Wisconsin missed out on more than $400 million in state and local tax revenue in 2023 alone, and more than $3.5 billion over the past decade." IRG added that 88,000 people left Wisconsin in 2023 alone.
• Wisconsin can't out-tax its neighbors and expect people to stay," IRG Deputy Director of Policy & Reform Maryjane Behm said.
• Florida, Texas, Tennessee, and both North and South Carolina, also saw Wisconsinites move-in.

Details worth keeping

"That lost income means lost tax revenue, too. The report notes that's as many people as Dodge County. This money should be spent shopping at Wisconsin businesses, eating at local restaurants, and donating to Wisconsin charities but is instead spent stimulating the economies of Florida, Texas, and other states with friendly income tax climates," the report's authors wrote.