WHEN HE WAS on the pro-wrestling circuit(巡回赛；巡回路线), Glenn Jacobs—known as “Kane” in the ring—worked in nearly every state. The result was a tax return “a foot tall(一英尺厚)”. Now the Republican mayor of Knox County, Tennessee, Mr Jacobs is pleased that his state eliminated(消除；取消) income tax in 2021 and is serving as a model for other states. On August 4th Missouri voted on a constitutional amendment to phase out(逐步淘汰；逐步取消) income tax. It failed, but its presence on the ballot(选票；投票) points to a broader trend.
当年在职业摔跤巡回赛上，格伦·雅各布斯（在擂台上人称“凯恩”）几乎在每个州都工作过。结果他的纳税申报表“有一英尺厚”。如今，作为田纳西州诺克斯县的共和党市长，雅各布斯先生很高兴他的州在2021年取消了所得税，并正成为其他州的榜样。8月4日，密苏里州就一项逐步取消所得税的宪法修正案进行了投票。该修正案未获通过，但它出现在选票上本身就指向了一个更广泛的趋势。
State tax systems are diverging(分化；分歧). Much attention has been paid to(人们十分关注) Democrats’ efforts to raise taxes on the rich. Washington state, for example, introduced an income tax on millionaires(百万富翁) this year, and in November Californians will vote on a wealth tax(财富税). But Republican-led states are moving in the other direction. Over the past five years 26 states—most led by Republicans—have reduced their individual income-tax rates. Missouri’s top marginal rate(边际税率) has fallen by more than 20% since 2017.
各州税收体系正在分化。民主党向富人增税的努力备受关注。例如，华盛顿州今年对百万富翁开征所得税，而11月加利福尼亚人将就财富税进行投票。但共和党领导的州正朝着另一个方向前进。过去五年中，有26个州（其中多数由共和党领导）降低了个人所得税税率。自2017年以来，密苏里州的最高边际税率已下降超过20%。
This widening disparity(差距；差异) is relatively new. Democrats and Republicans have always differed on(在…上意见不同) taxes, but historically states tried to stay within a range that raised revenue without dampening(抑制；减弱) economic activity. “It used to be possible to speak of a broad middle”, with rates hovering around 6%, says Jared Walczak of the Tax Foundation, a think-tank.(过去可以说存在一个广泛的中间地带，税率徘徊在6%左右。) “Now you either have low rates, below 4%, or increasingly high-rate states, entering into double digits,” Mr Walczak explains.
这种日益扩大的分歧相对较新。民主党和共和党在税收问题上历来存在分歧，但历史上各州都试图将税率维持在一个既能增加收入又不抑制经济活动的范围内。智库税务基金会的贾里德·沃尔恰克表示：“过去可以说存在一个广泛的中间地带”，税率徘徊在6%左右。沃尔恰克先生解释说：“现在各州要么税率低，低于4%，要么税率越来越高，进入两位数。”
