Do as we do?

Nevada’s tax system is noted for its regressiveness—that is, it puts a heavy burden on low-income people. That makes it something of a surprise that a Missouri state senator wants to imitate it.

Senator-elect Brian Nieves, a Republican from Franklin County, wants Missouri to have a high sales tax and no income tax—which are two of the principal features of Nevada’s tax system. That system ties state revenues to the vagaries of the economy, making it difficult to predict and providing unreliable revenues. It has created at least four state budget crises in Nevada since 1981. Nieves calls the system the “fair tax.”