Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Tax Effects Of Intergenerational Transfers: A Quantitative Exercise., Belinda Ewuraadwoa Arhin Boateng

Major Papers

Economists predict transfer of wealth from one generation to the next due to increased global wealth. This transfer of wealth is predicted to widen already existing poverty gaps in some economies. Some economists have suggested the taxation of intergenerational transfers in a bid to increase government revenue and reduce the widening gaps between the poor and the rich. This study captures the key mechanisms at work in assessing the labour earnings reaction to changes in unearned income, emanating from gifts and bequests that heirs receive. Three theoretical models are developed to understand the labor earnings reaction with varying unearned income …

Intended And Unintended Effects Of E-Cigarette Taxes On Youth Tobacco Use, Rahi Abouk, Charles J. Courtemanche, Dhaval Dave, Bo Feng, Abigail S. Friedman, Johanna Catherine Maclean, Michael F. Pesko, Joseph J. Sabia, Samuel Safford

Institute for the Study of Free Enterprise Working Papers

Over the past decade, rising youth use of e-cigarettes and other electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) has prompted aggressive regulation by state and local governments. Between 2010 and 2019, ten states and two large counties adopted ENDS taxes. Applying a continuous treatment difference-in-differences approach to data from two large national datasets (Monitoring the Future and the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System), this study explores the impact of ENDS taxes on youth tobacco use. We find that ENDS taxes reduce youth e-cigarette consumption, with estimated e-cigarette tax elasticities of -0.06 to -0.21. However, we estimate sizable positive cigarette cross-tax elasticities, suggesting …

The Effects Of U.S. Fiscal Policy On Income Inequality ( 1913 – 2013 ), J.D. Lewis

Theses and Dissertations

Income inequality in the United States has reached a level not seen since the Great Depression. Some academics and lawmakers suggest that growing inequality is due to changes in fiscal policy, arguing that cuts in taxes and government spending have reduced the inequality-mitigating effect of fiscal redistribution. While older research provides some support for this argument, newer research suggests otherwise. This disagreement in the literature led me to ask, How has fiscal policy affected income inequality in the United States during the last century? This study seeks to answer this question using data from Piketty et al. (2018), which includes …

The Effects Of Tax Policies On Entrepreneurship In Emerging Versus Mature Economies: Do Differences Exist Between Nascent And Established Firms?, Benjamin B. Boozer, Taleah H. Collum

Journal for the Advancement of Developing Economies

An extensive body of research defines various levels of entrepreneurship and considers emerging trends. This study uses data from Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) in developing a model that measures the impact of taxes and bureaucracy on entrepreneurship. The analysis considers effects by type of firm – nascent and established – and type of economy – emerging and mature. The aim of the manuscript is to test directional impact of tax policies on entrepreneurial activity. The model utilizes counter and dichotomous variables to measure effects before, during, and after the 2008-2009 Financial Crisis. Tax policies adversely impact both nascent and established …

States Lack Adequate Unemployment Insurance Reserves, Christopher J. O'Leary

Upjohn Institute Policy and Research Briefs

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of E-Cigarette Taxes On E-Cigarette Prices And Tobacco Product Sales: Evidence From Retail Panel Data, Chad Cotti, Charles J. Courtemanche, Joanna Catherine Maclean, Erik Nesson, Michael F. Pesko, Nathan Tefft

Institute for the Study of Free Enterprise Working Papers

We explore the effect of e-cigarette taxes enacted through 2017 in eight states and two large counties on e-cigarette prices, e-cigarette sales, and sales of other tobacco products. We use the Nielsen Retail Scanner data for the years 2011 to 2017, comprising approximately 35,000 retailers nationally. We calculate a Herfindahl–Hirschman Index of 0.251 for retail-based purchases of e-cigarettes, indicating high market concentration. We estimate a tax-to-price pass-through of 1.55 (p < 0.01) and an e-cigarette own-price elasticity of -2.6 (p < 0.01) for the average e-cigarette tax. We also estimate a positive cross-price elasticity of demand for e-cigarettes and traditional cigarettes of roughly 1.1 for the average tax, suggesting that e-cigarettes and traditional cigarettes are economic substitutes. Our results suggest that higher e-cigarette taxes would increase e-cigarette prices and reduce e-cigarette sales, with an unintended effect of increasing traditional cigarette sales. We simulate that for every one standard e-cigarette pod (a device that contains liquid nicotine in e-cigarettes) of 0.7 ml no longer purchased as a result of an e-cigarette tax, the same tax increases traditional cigarettes purchased by 6.2 extra packs.

Bowling Green Business: The Incentives Inciting Economic Growth, Paul Garbarino

Honors Projects

This paper analyzes the different factors and incentives influencing company and business site selection decision making. Policy incentives offered by governments for businesses, such as tax exemptions and reductions, subsidies, and promises of quality community life are evaluated for their effectiveness. This paper focuses on the City of Bowling Green, OH as a case study on what attracts businesses into local, smaller municipalities. Three manufacturer's within the Bowling Green jurisdiction are closely evaluated to determine what factors, including location, labor force, and quality of life, influenced their decisions to operate in Bowling Green.

Understanding And Modifying Health Behaviors, Kristina N. Piorkowski

Economics ETDs

This dissertation explores two drivers behind the spread of non-communicable diseases – sugar-sweetened beverage consumption and youth tobacco use – in order to improve policies tailored to mitigate these behaviors. Chapter 2 uses primary survey data to estimate the willingness to pay (WTP) for a tax on sugar sweetened beverages (SSBs) in New Mexico. Traditional contingent valuation regression methods were reformulated as a three-equation system. Results indicate that respondents who have healthier eating habits have statistically significantly higher preferences for SSB taxes. The estimated individual median WTP 95% confidence interval was 0.002-0.961 pennies-per-ounce. Chapter 3 continues the exploration into SSB …

The Economics Of Immigration Reform, Howard F. Chang

All Faculty Scholarship

In this article, I draw upon economic theory and recent empirical work on the economic and fiscal effects of immigration to evaluate some recent proposals for immigration reform in terms of their effects on the economic welfare of natives in the United States. In particular, I consider the Reforming American Immigration for a Strong Economy (RAISE) Act, a bill that would cut immigration to half of its current level. President Donald Trump has endorsed the RAISE Act and has insisted that many of its provisions be part of any legislation legalizing the status of unauthorized immigrants granted relief under the …

Cigarette Taxes And Illicit Trade In Europe Online Appendix, James Prieger, Jonathan D. Kulick

School of Public Policy Working Papers

Cigarettes are highly taxed in Europe to discourage tobacco use and to fund public-health measures to mitigate the harms from tobacco consumption. At higher prices some consumers substitute more toward illicit cigarettes. We find that raising prices in any one country would lead to substantial increases in the expected illicit market share and volume in that country. This appendix contains more complete information about the data and additional regressions to which the article published in Economic Inquiry (and also available in earlier form as School of Public Policy Working Paper 60) refers.

2017-21 The Redistributive Role Of Government Social Security Transfers On Inequality In China, Meng Cai, Ximing Yue

Centre for Human Capital and Productivity. CHCP Working Papers

No abstract provided.

Taxes, Transfers, And Women's Labor Supply In The United States, Melanie Guldi, Lucie Schmidt

Economics: Faculty Publications

The US tax and transfer system generates revenue and provides safety net programs that move millions out of poverty. Since women are more likely to live in poverty, they are more likely to qualify for means-tested transfers. The structure of taxation in the United States often penalizes secondary earners, who are usually women. These programs alter work incentives and consequently may affect labor supply decisions. In this chapter, we examine the empirical evidence on the effects of taxes and transfers on the labor supply of women in the United States. We show that much has changed since 1990, with the …

Taxing Business In Missouri, R. W. Hafer, Howard J. Wall

Center for Applied Economics

If one believes popular rankings of “tax climate” across the states, Missouri fares pretty well. Using generic types of business tax rankings, however, can mask underlying issues that may belie their message. This study uses the Tax Foundation’s 2015 report “Location Matters: The State Tax Costs of Doing Business” to compare total tax rates paid by different types of businesses in Missouri to those paid by similar businesses in other states. Looking at the total taxes paid—not only corporate income taxes, but also property taxes, unemployment taxes, etc.—is crucial to understanding the total or effective burden of state taxes on …

Special Economic Zones In The United States: From Colonial Charters, To Foreign-Trade Zones, Toward Ussezs, Tom W. Bell

Tom W. Bell

Estimating Intensive And Extensive Tax Responsiveness: Do Older Workers Respond To Income Taxes?, Abby Alpert, David Powell

David Powell

How To Raise State Revenue Without Raising Taxes, Christopher R. Bollinger

Issue Brief on Topics Affecting Kentucky’s Economy

A positive relationship exists between educational attainment and earnings, which has been well established in the literature through multiple studies. This, in turn, influences the revenues generated for the state of Kentucky through the personal income tax. We predict even the modest change of increasing Associate’s and Bachelor’s degree holders by 1% would increase revenue by $37 million. Kentucky loses between $300 million and $500 million in state tax revenues every year because our educational attainment is lower than the national average.

Framing Elite Consensus, Ideology And Theory And A Classcrits Response, Athena D. Mutua

Journal Articles

This short paper, really a thought piece, builds upon the examination begun in the Foreword of the ClassCrits VI Symposium which sought to outline a ClassCrits critique of neoclassical economic principles. It argues that neoliberal practices, theory and ideology, built on the scaffold of neoclassical economic ideas, frame an elite consensus that makes elites feel good but which are ethically, intellectually, and structurally problematic for the social well-being of most Americans. It does so, in part, by chronicling a number of recent practices of large corporations, including for example, the practice of inversion. Again, this paper takes as its specific …

Does Labor Supply Respond To Transitory Income? Evidence From The Economic Stimulus Payments Of 2008, David Powell

David Powell

Tax policy is often used to encourage consumer spending in recessions and a growing literature finds evidence that households increase short-term spending in response to receipt of tax rebates. The literature has largely ignored the effect on labor supply as rebates may crowd out labor earnings and households may consume additional leisure. The responsiveness of labor supply to transitory income has been underexplored more broadly so it is difficult to predict this labor supply effect. I exploit the randomized timing of the 2008 economic stimulus payments to study the effects of transitory income on monthly household labor earnings. Rebates can …

Impacto De La Descentralización En Las Finanzas Públicas De Bogotá 2002 2012, Angélica Maria Pedraza Cubillos

Economía

El presente estudio analiza los efectos económicos y políticos que produjo el proceso de descentralización en las finanzas públicas a nivel distrital. La investigación exterioriza las dificultades por las cuales atravesaba Colombia en el siglo XX, época en la cual se redactó la Constitución Política de 199,1 adoptando una medida de descentralización y otorgando una mayor autonomía política, administrativa y fiscal para los entes territoriales, fortaleciendo así la democracia a nivel regional y municipal. El problema de investigación planteado sobre los efectos de la descentralización conlleva a preguntarse si dicho proceso descentralizador contribuyó positivamente a las finanzas públicas de Bogotá. …

Do Payroll Taxes In The United States Create Bunching At Kink Points?, David Powell

David Powell

Much of the literature on labor supply responsiveness to taxes studies the effects of payroll and income taxes together, usually using income tax changes to identify effects. There is less research on how individuals respond to payroll taxes specifically. Given the salience of the payroll tax relative to other income taxes, it is possible that taxpayers respond differentially than income tax elasticities may suggest. Using data from the Social Security Administration, I exploit two recent short-term changes in payroll taxes to study whether labor earnings responded. The Making Work Pay Tax Credit reduced the payroll tax by 6.2 percentage points …

The Tax Treatment Of Mixed Personal And Rental Use Of Real Estate, Natsua Asai

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

In 2010, individual taxes provided almost half (43.35 %) of the U.S. Federal Revenue. Every U.S. citizen has an obligation to pay tax in order to support their government; however, they also have the right to keep tax as low as possible by effective tax planning (Smith, Harmelink, & Hasselback, 2012). Tax planning is a proper arrangement of transactions or affairs in order to reduce tax liability. Tax planning can become complex if the transaction involves multiple areas of tax law. I am going to discuss an aspect of real estate that involves multiple concepts and rules governing tax compliance: …

The Fair And Laissez-Faire Markets: From A Neoliberal Laissez-Faire Baseline To A Fair Market, Eric L. Dixon

Pursuit - The Journal of Undergraduate Research at The University of Tennessee

The essay begins with a brief overview of the role of the neoliberal conception of the laissez-faire market in modern political economy. The essay then goes on to defend three claims: 1) the laissez-faire version of a market should not be considered the economic ideal or baseline version of a market because often the fundamental conditions required to reach a genuine equilibrium are unfulfilled under a laissez-faire environment, 2) a distribution resultant from a laissez-faire market should not be considered the ultima facie just distributive baseline because an unregulated market may allocate commodities according to morally arbitrary factors and requires …

Polluters’ Profits And Political Response: Direct Control Versus Taxes: Comment, Robert S. Main, Charles W. Baird

Robert S. Main

In a recent issue of this Review, James Buchanan and Gordon Tullock (B-T) presented a public choice analysis of the relative merits of direct controls and taxes in externality control. In Section IV of their paper, B-T consider the case of reciprocal external diseconomies of consumption. They ask whether "... persons in this sort of interaction, acting through the political processes of the community, will impose on themselves either a penalty tax or direct regulation" (p. 143). Their analysis is carried out within the context of a two-person model in which each person consumes the same quantity of a good …

Análisis De La Contribución Del 4xmil Y Sus Efectos En La Inversión Extranjera Directa Ied En Colombia, Como Incidencia De Una Mayor Carga Impositiva En El Comercio Internacional En El Periodo De 1998 A 2012, Leidy Katherine Arias Hernández, Tania Alejandra Rodríguez Sabogal, Derly Johana Rivas Jiménez

Finanzas y Comercio Internacional

El objetivo de este trabajo, es analizar los efectos que genera el Gravamen a los Movimientos Financieros, conocido como 4xmil, en la Inversión Extranjera Directa (IED), como incidencia de una mayor carga impositiva y por consiguiente su efecto para el Comercio internacional en Colombia en el periodo comprendido entre 1998 y 2012, el cual, se desarrolla a través de un análisis cualitativo, por medio de revisión documental de referentes teóricos y documentos institucionales, con el fin de exponer de manera más clara cada una de las variables de estudio; igualmente, mediante un proceso cuantitativo no experimental con componentes de corte …

Higher Gasoline Taxes: Elitist Or Equitable?, Barry Bluestone, Stephanie Pollack

Stephanie Pollack

No abstract provided.

Higher Gasoline Taxes: Elitist Or Equitable?, Barry Bluestone, Stephanie Pollack

Barry Bluestone

No abstract provided.

State Incentives For Innovation, Star Scientists, And Jobs: Evidence From Biotech, Enrico Moretti, Daniel J. Wilson

Upjohn Institute Working Papers

We evaluate the effects of state-provided financial incentives for biotech companies, which are part of a growing trend of placed-based policies designed to spur innovation clusters. We estimate that the adoption of subsidies for biotech employers by a state raises the number of star biotech scientists in that state by about 15 percent over a three-year period. A 10 percent decline in the user cost of capital induced by an increase in R&D tax incentives raises the number of stars by 22 percent. Most of the gains are due to the relocation of star scientists to adopting states, with limited …

Taxing The Opposition: Cactus League Attendance And The Efficiency Of The 'Cubs Tax', Michael C. Davis, Craig Palsson, Joseph Price

Economics Faculty Research & Creative Works

In 2010, a plan to finance a new spring training stadium for the Cubs through a ticket surcharge on all games in the Cactus League was proposed. We find that the Cubs increase attendance when they are the away team by about 37%. Thus, the surcharge would be economically justified as long as the price elasticity of tickets is less than 0.32, which many prior studies find to be the case. This tax provides one of the few examples in which the cost of a subsidized stadium would be born primarily by the group that benefits the most from the …

Effects Of Ad-Valorem Taxes On Location Decision Under Free Entry Cournot Oligopoly, Yeung-Nan Shieh

Faculty Publications

This paper examines the impact of the ad-valorem commodity tax as a policy device on the location decision of undifferentiated oligopolistic firms with free entry. It shows that: (1) When the distance between the plant location and the output market is held constant, the optimum location for the oligopolistic firm would be independent of the ad-valorem tax if the production function is homothetic, and (2) when the distance between the plant location and the output market is a decision variable, the optimum location for the oligopolistic firm will move closer to the output market if the demand function is linear …

Effects Of Ad-Valorem Taxes On Location Decision Under Free Entry Cournot Oligopoly, Yeung-Nan Shieh

Yeung-Nan Shieh

This paper examines the impact of the ad-valorem commodity tax as a policy device on the location decision of undifferentiated oligopolistic firms with free entry. It shows that: (1) When the distance between the plant location and the output market is held constant, the optimum location for the oligopolistic firm would be independent of the ad-valorem tax if the production function is homothetic, and (2) when the distance between the plant location and the output market is a decision variable, the optimum location for the oligopolistic firm will move closer to the output market if the demand function is linear …