Taxation officers’ grassroots work experience and tax performance: Evidence from China

This paper examines the effect of grassroots work experience on the working capacities of Chinese officials and how this effect manifests in their measurable performance. Using the Chinese Industrial Enterprises Database (CIED, 1998–2007) and provincial-level local taxation directors’ personal data, we assess the actual tax burden of firms as a measure of directors’ tax levy performance. We analyze these officials’ grassroots work experience data in relation to the level of tax levy in their jurisdictions and find that grassroots work experience significantly improves jurisdictional tax levy performance, reflecting an enhancement effect on directorial capacity associate with grassroots work experience. This relationship remains robust even as we examine alternative hypotheses such as post-employment education, first-time appointment age and promotion incentives. Our analysis reveals that the threat of local tax penalties and the rate of tax offenses are two important mechanisms relating to this measure. Moreover, our findings are particularly significant in local taxation directors with higher first-time employment age and grassroots experience related to economics. Overall, this paper supports the notion that grassroots work experience plays a key role in shaping officials’ working capacity and provides suggestions for optimizing the tax levy system.