Yes, most of the taxes paid in Texas are paid by businesses.  Lacking a personal income tax (which is mostly paid by individuals), as most states have, Texas relies more heavily on property and sales taxes—taxes which fall on both businesses and individuals.  The Comptroller’s exemption study only looks at a few selected taxes, including sales and school property taxes, but not the entire spectrum of taxes in the state.  The most comprehensive look at the state and local tax split between businesses and individuals is a study conducted by Ernst and Young for the Council on State Taxation.  Their report can be accessed here:

 

http://www.cost.org/Page.aspx?id=72322

 

On page 15 you’ll find a table that shows the split between taxes paid by businesses and those paid by individuals in each of the 50 states.  You’ll note that Texas’ tax system relies much more heavily on business—61.2 percent than most other states.    

 

The fact that our overall tax burden is low mitigates this, somewhat.  Even so, business taxes account for 5.3 percent of Texas gross state product, 8 percent above the national average.

 

Dale