New York State's business tax climate ranks last in the nation this year according to a recently released index from the Tax Foundation, a Washington think tank.
"Despite moderate corporate taxes, New York scores at the bottom this year by having the worst individual income tax, the sixth-worst unemployment insurance taxes, and the sixth-worst property taxes," the foundation said in
The foundation's index represents the tax climate of each state as of July 1, 2012.
Last year, New York ranked 49th, a spot ahead of New Jersey. This year, the neighboring states swapped ranks because the Empire State's index has dropped.
Wyoming was the top-ranked state, followed by South Dakota and Nevada, the state with the nation's highest unemployment rate.
"The lesson is simple: a state that raises sufficient revenue without one of the major taxes will, all things being equal, have an advantage over those states that levy every tax in the state tax collector's arsenal," the report said.
