If you talk to a low-income Alabamian about the state’s tax system, you’re liable to hear two things. One is a boast that the state has some of the nation’s lowest taxes. The other is a complaint that, nevertheless, the person pays too much in taxes. The statements may sound contradictory, but both are grounded in reality.

This fact sheet examines an Alabama tax paradox: that low-income residents pay so much in taxes even as their state collects comparatively little money for the public services that can help make their lives better.