[Mr. Bird]

So what's not true? Regardless of population or the presence of local taxes, if the majority of Washingtonians earn substantial salaries, the percentage burden will be necessarily higher than that of a state with lower average salaries.

Example: If average income in MS is $20k/year, their federal percentage burden falls in the 15% range. If WA averages $70k, the percentage burden is closer to 27%. So, a state with higher incomes (note NY, CT, and NJ) will by definition have a higher percentage burden.

[Eva]

The average family wage in the county where I live is $23,000/yr. There are counties in more rural areas where the family wage is considerably lower, where logging has been the tradition and families go on welfare and unemployment for five months out of every year.