Media
Happy Tax Freedom Day 2011, Pennsylvania
According to the Tax Foundation, if every Pennsylvanian started working on January 1, we would have to work until April 14, or 104 days of the year, in order to pay off their total tax burden. So Happy Tax Freedom Day!
The commonwealth has the 11th highest tax burden in the nation, slightly worse than the national average, with a Tax Freedom Day of April 12. The highest state and local tax burden in 2011 went to Connecticut, which won’t celebrate Tax Freedom Day until May 2, whereas Mississippi’s Tax Freedom Day occured on March 26.
Another way of looking at it is, if you work an 8-hour workday, the first 2 hours and 20 minutes of every day go towards paying the taxes.
Looking at the national tax burden over time is also cause for concern. As the chart shows, Americans would have to work until May 23 (an extra 41 days) this year if the measure included paying off the federal deficit.