When someone travels to another country, it is essential to check how strong the U.S. dollar is against the local currency. Surprisingly, even within the States there are variations in the value of the dollar. A recent study published by the Tax Foundation on Monday reveals the real value of $100 in each State. Prices of goods differ from State to State indicating that $100 may not buy as much in one State as it did in another.
This report identifies places where $100 has the highest purchasing power; Mississippi, Arkansas and South Dakota; with real purchasing power, 36 percent greater in Mississippi than it is in the District of Columbia Mississippi or the D.C. For a better understanding, with these calculations, if you have $50,000 in after tax income in Mississippi, you would have to have after-tax earnings of $68,000 in the District of Columbia or the D.C. just to afford the same overall standard of living.
The report also reveals that this same $100 has far more lower purchasing power in Hawaii, and the lowest in New York.
More expensive states generally have higher salaries, as recognized by the Tax Foundation. You can afford to purchase more expensive food, clothing, toiletries, furniture, etc, as there you are earning more. However, this is not necessarily the case. A good example of this would be Nebraska and California. After adjusting for regional price differences, a Nebraskan who has roughly the same salary as a Californian actually has about $10,000 more in real earnings to spend, or higher purchasing power. Basically, they earn almost identical average salaries but, when adjusted for price parity (i.e. how far a dollar goes in each area), Nebraskan real incomes are almost $10,000 higher.
The Tax Foundation highlights, taxes are charged based on the income irrespective of expenses. If you are living in a state where things are more expensive, or you are one of the record number of Americans shelling out more than 30% of their income on rent, you are still in the same tax bracket as someone dwelling in a cheaper state.
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You would have to be blind not to see that states run by liberal democrats are the most costly to live in, likely due to the high taxes and fees in place. Higher cost of living and less freedoms seem to be the real cost of liberal control.