Florida leads country in wealth accumulation

Florida’s decade-long population boom has paid off in accumulating wealth: the state is No. 1 nationwide in adding adjusted gross income, according to a new study from Wirepoints, an independent research website.

The Sunshine State added $90.5 billion in adjusted gross income from 2010 to 2018, the report shows, up 20.3%, from $467.5 billion a decade ago. South Carolina, Nevada, Idaho and Arizona follow Florida in the report, based on percentage gains in added income.

But while five states had gains of at least 10%, Florida is well ahead of the country in actual dollars gained. Outside of Texas, which picked up $30.7 billion, a 5% increase, only two states gained more than $15 billion in adjusted gross income: North Carolina, at $15.8 billion and South Carolina, at $15.2 billion.

On the flip side, states with the biggest losses in adjusted gross income are a who’s who of high-tax states. Four of the bottom five, ahead of Alaska, are New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Illinois.

One reason for the wealth transfers, of course is tax policies. The report points out the 17 states with either a flat tax or no income tax took in $120 billion in adjusted gross income from states with progressive income tax systems. Those funds come from nearly 2 million people who moved into a no-tax or flat tax state from 2010 to 2018, the report shows. The report adds other reasons draw people to move beyond taxes, including employment opportunities, housing costs and weather.