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Taxing the Labor Income of Spouses

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  • Ludwig von Auer
  • Bettina Büttner

Abstract

This study investigates the consequences of revenue-neutral tax reforms on the members of two-person households. The model employed has individual utility functions for household members and allows for household production. General conditions are derived specifying when such tax reforms are able to generate Pareto improvements for the individuals involved. Certain relevant characteristics of labor-supply elasticities drawn from the empirical literature are presented and are related to the theoretical results presented. This allows for some simple recommendations to be formulated concerning such topical social policy issues as income splitting and the tax treatment of families.

Suggested Citation

  • Ludwig von Auer & Bettina Büttner, 2006. "Taxing the Labor Income of Spouses," Journal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics (JITE), Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 162(2), pages 291-308, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:mhr:jinste:urn:sici:0932-4569(200606)162:2_291:ttlios_2.0.tx_2-a
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    5. Apps, Patricia F. & Rees, Ray, 1988. "Taxation and the household," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 35(3), pages 355-369, April.
    6. Aaberge, Rolf & Colombino, Ugo & Strom, Steinar, 1999. "Labour Supply in Italy: An Empirical Analysis of Joint Household Decisions, with Taxes and Quantity Constraints," Journal of Applied Econometrics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 14(4), pages 403-422, July-Aug..
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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D13 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Production and Intrahouse Allocation
    • H21 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Efficiency; Optimal Taxation
    • H24 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Personal Income and Other Nonbusiness Taxes and Subsidies
    • H31 - Public Economics - - Fiscal Policies and Behavior of Economic Agents - - - Household
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply

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