Texas Income Taxes

The phrase “don’t mess with Texas” has many meanings, but one which it has always had is “NO INCOME TAXES.” Yep, that’s right… Texas is one of the few remaining states in the U.S. that does not levy an income tax on individuals.
To be sure there are many other types of taxes that do affect the Texas resident or visitor, but income tax is not one of them. Further, business entities aren’t so lucky…a fairly broad based business “franchise” tax does apply to almost any type of business entity doing business in Texas. That issue is explored elsewhere in this blog. (Texas politicians are careful to maintain that the franchise tax is not an income tax, but you can draw your own conclusions.)
The absence of an income tax, of course, is touted as a key factor attracting non-Texans to become Texans.