Andrew Duehren, “States Say No Thanks to Trump Tax Cuts, Drawing Republican Fire,” N.Y. Times (Feb. 14, 2026):

In statehouses across the country, policymakers are grappling with the changes Republicans made last year to the federal income tax. The law created or revived a slew of expensive tax breaks for both business and individuals, including versions of President Trump’s campaign promises to not tax tips or overtime pay.

Many of those changes cut taxes by reducing the amount of income subject to taxation in the first place. Most states use federal definitions of income as the starting point for their own income taxes, and so the federal tax breaks can also reduce the amount of money states can tax.

That means the tax law passed in Congress is hitting state revenues, prompting some states to proactively exclude the new federal tax cuts from their tax codes. Typically, tweaks like this fly under the radar, even if they can result in people owing slightly more in state taxes. But as the Trump administration and Republicans bet on a tax “refund boom” to lift their electoral prospects, the technocratic relationship between state and federal income taxes is fueling a political firefight in Washington.