New Yorkers Moving To Florida To Escape 'Tax Hell,' Official Says

NEW YORK — About 900 people are flocking to Florida every day to escape the "tax hell" that states like New York and New Jersey are in, the state's top financial official said.

Florida CFO Jimmy Patronis told Fox Business' Neil Cavuto last week that these blue states are "financial trainwrecks" that are driving taxpayers to live in Florida where they can keep their money.

"Let's just talk about the empty nesters from New York, or the empty nesters from New Jersey," Patronis said. "Those states are financial trainwrecks. They are upside down. They then decide to leave the tax hell that those states are in and move to the state of Florida."

Ultimately, Patronis added, these empty nesters will bring their investments and retirement wealth to the State of Florida without adding pressure to the school system.

"It's a win-win," he said.

More people have been moving to Florida in recent years, according to a Demographic Estimating Conference report released in March 2021.

The report states that about 308,497 will move to Florida per year between April 1, 2020, and April 1, 2025 — representing a compound growth rate of 1.39 percent. According to state economists, that's equal to adding a city slightly larger than Orlando every year. By 2022, the population is expected to grow to 22 million residents.

Florida is one of nine states that doesn't impose an income tax. In New York, however, state lawmakers unveiled a plan in April that would raise the income tax rate from 8.82 percent to 9.65 percent for individuals making more than $1 million.