Michigan State Representative Matt Maddock has criticized state government spending and tax policy in a series of posts on X (formerly Twitter), comparing Michigan’s per capita expenditures to those of Florida and questioning the need for current income and property taxes.
On February 18, 2026, Maddock posted, “Michigan democrats want to spend $8,698 per person to run our state government. Florida spends $5,003 which is $3,695 (42%) LESS per person to run Florida government. This is why businesses and our kids are leaving and our economy sucks.”
Shortly after, he continued his argument with another post: “Can we eliminate our income and property taxes? Our income tax is 12 billion + 19 billion property tax (total of 31 billion). If we spent what Florida spends per person ($5,003 vs $8,698) we would spend 37 billion less per year, enough to eliminate the 31 billion in income and” The post appears to be truncated but suggests that reducing state spending could offset the need for certain taxes.
Later that day, Maddock addressed proposed budget increases by Michigan Democrats: “@MichiganDems want to increase taxes another 800 million this year and increase the budget from 81 billion to 88.1 billion. They hate ppl that work and pay taxes.”
Matt Maddock serves as a member of the Michigan House of Representatives. His comments come amid ongoing debates over Michigan’s fiscal policy. In recent years, state lawmakers have considered changes to both spending levels and taxation structures as part of broader discussions about economic competitiveness and population trends.
