The data coming out of Massachusetts confirms exactly what I have been warning about for years. You cannot raise taxes on a shrinking base and expect the system to hold together. According to new IRS migration data, the state lost roughly $4.18 billion in adjusted gross income to other states in 2023, a dramatic increase from about $900 million a decade earlier. This came immediately after the implementation of a 4% surtax on income over $1 million, a policy sold as a way to fund education and infrastructure but which has instead accelerated the exit of high-income earners.
What stands out is not just the number of people leaving, but who is leaving. High earners now account for about 70% of the outbound income, meaning the very group being targeted for revenue is the one walking out the door. That is the fatal flaw in these policies. Governments assume the wealthy are trapped. They are not. Capital is mobile, and when you create an environment that penalizes productivity, investment, and success, it simply relocates.
About half of those leaving Massachusetts are heading to states like Florida and New Hampshire, jurisdictions that impose far lower tax burdens or none at all on income. This is not random movement. This is deliberate. People are voting with their feet, and more importantly, they are taking their income, businesses, and long-term investment potential with them. The idea that you can isolate taxation within state borders without consequence is simply false…