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1 Joseph Henchman, The Right Prescription for Mississippi 1 (2008)

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FACT

August 2008
No. 139

The Right Prescription for Mississippi
By Joseph Henchman
In early 2008, Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour announced the creation of the Mississippi Tax
Study Commission, which is tasked with preparing a comprehensive study of the state's tax system
and recommending suggested improvements. The Commission, which brings together members
with a wide range of business, legal, academic, and legislative expertise, has been instructed to
prepare a report of its findings by September 2008.
The Mississippi Tax Study Commission has released its draft report of recommendations, and has
begun voting on final recommendations. There is both good and not-so-good in the list of proposals.
The Good
o Eliminate the franchise tax. The report proposes, as a long-term goal, phasing the tax out
over five years. This economically damaging part of Mississippi's tax code (imposing a
$2.50 levy for every $1,000 in capital that is held, invested, or employed by a business) hits
firms even when they are not profitable, and the burden of calculating it prevents Mississippi
from attracting multi-state and multi-national corporations. Because many of Mississippi's
neighbors still levy this tax, it would provide a regional comparative advantage. Its abolition
would give Mississippi a boost, even if the revenue were made up elsewhere.
o Flatten Corporate Tax Rates. The report recommends eliminating two corporate tax
brackets and taxing all corporate income at the top rate of 5 percent (the same top rate as
individual income taxes), and exempting the first $10,000 of taxable income. Keeping the
rates the same reduces the incentive to shift income between the two systems, and sticking
with one rate reduces complexity. Arguments for progressive rates, whatever their merit in
the individual income tax context, are illogical in the corporate income tax context. The

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