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$2.00 Gas! Studying the Effects of a Gas Tax Moratorium

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Author Info
Joseph J. Doyle, Jr.
Krislert Samphantharak
Abstract

There are surprisingly few estimates of the effect of sales taxes on retail prices, especially at the firm level. Further, along both sides of a state border, a change in one state%u2019s sales tax can shed light on the nature of competition, as a subset of firms effectively experiences a change in its marginal cost. This paper considers the suspension, and subsequent reinstatement, of the 5% gasoline sales tax in Illinois and Indiana following a temporary price spike in the spring of 2000. Earlier laws set the timing of the reinstatements, providing plausibly exogenous changes in the tax rates. Using a unique dataset of daily, gas station-level data, retail gas prices are found to drop by 3% following the suspension, and increase by 4% following the reinstatements. After linking the stations to driving distance data, some evidence suggests that the tax increases are associated with higher prices up to an hour%u2019s drive into neighboring states.

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Paper provided by National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc in its series NBER Working Papers with number 12266.

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Date of creation: May 2006
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Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:12266

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H2 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue

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    Other versions:
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  13. Ricardo J. Caballero & Eduardo M. R. A. Engel & John C. Haltiwanger, 1995. "Plant-Level Adjustment and Aggregate Investment Dynamics," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 26(1995-2), pages 1-54. [Downloadable!]
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  15. Ashenfelter, Orley & Sullivan, Daniel, 1987. "Nonparametric Tests of Market Structure: An Application to the Cigarette Industry," Journal of Industrial Economics, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 35(4), pages 483-98, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  1. Gilbert E. Metcalf, 2006. "Federal Tax Policy Towards Energy," Discussion Papers Series, Department of Economics, Tufts University 0612, Department of Economics, Tufts University. [Downloadable!]
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