West Virginia

Income tax: 6.5%
State sales tax: 6%
Property tax per capita: $683
Inheritance tax: None
Estate tax: None

West Virginia began 2011 with a 3 percent tax on food items, which dropped to 2 percent in August and will fall to 1 percent in July 2012. The tax on food items will be eliminated in mid-2013 if the state determines it has sufficient reserves in its rainy-day fund, according to Bloomberg BNA. The state has the nation's second-highest lottery revenue, at $356 per person in 2009, according to the Tax Foundation. Also, the state taxes Social Security income.