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California Gov. Gavin Newsom over the weekend renewed his claim that Florida and Texas are the “real high-tax states,” arguing that lower- and middle-income residents in those states shoulder a heavier tax burden than their counterparts in the Golden State.
Speaking onstage at SXSW in Austin, Texas, the Democratic governor framed the issue in moral terms.
“We have the most progressive tax rates in America. Texas, the most regressive. Texas taxes poor folks more than we tax our richest. The question for you is who’s the higher tax state? California or Texas? Who are you for? Are you just for the 1% or are you for the 98%?” Newsom said, before taking a shot at Florida, which he called the “other regressive tax state.”
“Your middle class pays more taxes in Texas than our middle class in California,” Newsom added. “It’s a great mythology – it’s just ‘the richest of the rich come here because they can avoid paying a damn penny.’”
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Gavin Newsom speaks onstage during the “Networth And Chill” featured session during the 2026 SXSW Conference And Festival at Hilton Austin on March 15, 2026, in Austin, Texas. (Julia Beverly/WireImage / Getty Images)
The remarks drew pushback online, with RealClearPolitics co-founder Tom Bevan calling Newsom’s claim a “blatant, verifiable falsehood.”
He shared a Wallethub 2025 analysis ranking U.S. states by overall tax burden, with California coming in at 4th overall, behind Vermont, New York and Hawaii.
The governor, who has made similar arguments before, appeared to be referring to a study from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), which ranks Florida as the most regressive state and local tax system in the country and Texas the seventh-most regressive.
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ITEP’s analysis focuses on how tax burdens are distributed across income groups rather than overall tax levels. The group argues that states such as Texas and Florida look “low tax” largely because they do not levy a broad-based personal income tax — a structure that disproportionately benefits high earners.
To make up the difference, those states rely more heavily on sales, excise and property taxes, which tend to take a larger share of income from lower-income households. California, by contrast, uses a highly progressive income tax system that places more of the burden on top earners and helps offset regressive taxes lower down the income ladder.
Vivian Tu, left, and Gavin Newsom speak on stage during “Networth And Chill With Guest Governor Gavin Newsom” at the 2026 SXSW Conference And Festival at Hilton Austin on March 15, 2026, in Austin, Texas. (Gary Miller/FilmMagic / Getty Images)
Critics, however, say that framing captures only part of the picture because it focuses on tax burden by income group rather than overall tax climate — where California remains far more burdensome for top earners, investors and many businesses.
California has the highest top marginal income tax rate in the nation at 13.3%, while Texas and Florida have no state income tax. On a per capita basis, California also collects significantly more in state and local taxes than either state, according to data from the Tax Foundation.
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The debate comes as California has seen continued net domestic outmigration in recent years, while Texas and Florida have attracted new residents and businesses, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has repeatedly clashed with Newsom over the relative merits of red- and blue-state governance, mocked the Democrat’s remarks on X.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks during a roundtable discussion on college sports in the East Room of the White House on March 6, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images / Getty Images)
“There are lies, damned lies and statistics. Then there is whatever you’d call the claim that California has lower taxes than Florida,” DeSantis wrote, reposting Bevan. “Even people who like California governance acknowledge CA is a very high tax state: highest sales, income and gas taxes in the nation.”
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FOX Business has reached out to Newsom’s office, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy and the Tax Foundation for additional comment.
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