Tax & Budget
Publications | Press Releases | Resources
Publications
- The Right Tobacco Tax Rate: Balancing Efficiency and Equity (pdf) - December 2008
Kentucky needs to raise the cigarette tax significantly to offset smoking-related social costs and discourage smoking. The current tax rate does neither. Further, an increase of less than 70 cents would merely produce revenues, doing little to decrease smoking and smoking-related costs.
- The Federal Tax on Gasoline and Kentucky’s Motor Fuel Tax (pdf) - August 2008
With summer travel at its peak, soaring gas prices and an increase in Kentucky’s gas tax taking effect, much discussion around the nation and state has been centered on motor fuel taxes and whether or not a suspension of gas taxes is needed.
- Transparency in State Government Budgeting and Finances (pdf) - June 2008
While much has been written about what constitutes a preferred fiscal structure or sound fiscal policies for state governments, the government’s success or failure in implementing these policies cannot be assessed without public access and review.
Governor Beshear vetoed ten provisions in the Executive Branch Budget bill, HB 406 and one item in the Judicial Budget bill, HB 408. The General Assembly adjourned without acting to override the vetoes. The vetoes have little monetary impact on the budget.
- The General Assembly Reaches a Budget Compromise (pdf) - April 2008
After several days of heated discussions Kentucky's House of Representatives and Senate finally reached a budget compromise. The compromise includes no additional taxes and makes cuts to a variety of agencies. The Governor has indicated he won't veto the entire budget, but he now has until the end of the day on April 14th to line-item veto any specific budget provisions.
- The Kentucky Senate's Budget (pdf) - March 2008
Kentucky's Senate made several changes to the budget proposal with the primary difference being a rejection of the new taxes proposed by the House. The Senate's budget relies in part on a larger portion of Kentucky Lottery receipts going to the General Fund. Now, the two chambers negotiate the differences with the hope of reaching an agreement before the Veto period begins.
- The Kentucky House of Representatives' Budget (pdf) - March 2008
Kentucky's House of Representatives passsed their version of the budget. Find out the key differences in the House's budget versus the Governor Beshear's proposed budget as the Senate begins reviewing and preparing a response.
- Kentucky's Structural Deficit (pdf) - March 2008
The Commonwealth of Kentucky, like many other states, faces a budget shortfall that creates difficult decisions when it comes to setting spending priorities. Kentucky currently faces a structural deficit in which the amount of money needed to maintain current services exceeds the revenue generated by the state’s current tax system.
- Increasing the Cigarette Excise Tax Would Provide More Revenue and Would Not Hamper Cross Border Sales (pdf) - March 2008
With the legislature considering raising the cigarette excise tax, KYA's research shows that the previous increase did little to stymie cross-border sales. However, the increase did provide additional revenues.
- Analysis of Governor Beshear's Proposed Budget (pdf) - February 2008
Governor Beshear's budget proposal lays out a scaled down spending plan for the Commonwealth.
- A State-Earned Income Tax Credit Would Help Kentucky’s Working Families (pdf) - January 2008
This brief examines the federal EITC and the benefits a state-level EITC would provide to Kentucky’s working families if such a credit were implemented in the Commonwealth.
- Kentucky’s Tax Modernization:
Does it Increase the State’s Risk of a Structural Deficit?
(pdf) - May 2007
On March 18, 2005, Kentucky Governor Ernie Fletcher signed into law a tax modernization package designed to better attract and retain jobs and spur economic growth. Now, more than two years later, does Governor Fletcher’s tax plan truly improve the security of Kentucky’s tax revenues in the long-term?
- Combined Reporting: A Solution to Corporate Tax Shelters in Kentucky (pdf) - April 2007
Kentucky is losing hundreds of millions of dollars every year due to corporate tax loopholes. Kentucky Youth Advocates has issued a report describing these loopholes and how a tax reporting requirement mandated in twenty states can thwart them all.
- Kentucky’s Budgetary Exposure to Captive REIT Strategies (pdf) - March 2007
As tax day approaches, consider this: What if you could deduct your mortgage or rent payment from your taxes, but instead of mailing your check to your bank or landlord, you mailed it to yourself? A KYA report finds that state multi-corporations use a loophole to do just that.