Connecticut, Rhode Island, Maryland, California, New York ... all of these states have one thing in common: They have high taxes that are driving out residents. The latest example is New York.

Between 2000 and 2010, New York claims that prize for the state that saw the biggest exodus of any state in the nation. During that decade, 3.4 million residents left New York. When considering the amount of folks who migrated to New York, it works out to be about a 1.3 million net loss in New York residents.

When people migrate, so does their money. The loss of these residents also represents a net tax loss of $45.6 billion.

Where are these New Yorkers fleeing? More than 600,000 of them moved to … Florida! The liberal excuse is that it is because of the weather. But then the proggies can’t explain why California (with a wonderful climate) is hemorrhaging people. One of the predominant realistic explanations is taxes. Florida doesn’t have a state income tax. It also doesn’t impose an estate tax. Where do I live? Florida.

I’ve pointed you to this study before from Ohio University. Over a similar time period (1998 to 2007), “more than 1,100 people every day including Sundays and holidays moved from the nine highest income-tax states such as California, New Jersey, New York and Ohio and relocated mostly to the nine tax-haven states with no income tax, including Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire and Texas.”

There’s a message here for politicians, but they’re too hungry for power, and eager to buy the votes that preserve that power, to listen.