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The long run effects of changes in tax progressivity

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  • Carroll, Daniel R.
  • Young, Eric R.

Abstract

This paper compares the steady-state outcomes of revenue-neutral changes to the progressivity of the tax schedule. Our economy features heterogeneous households who differ in their preferences and permanent labor productivities, but it does not have idiosyncratic risk. We find that increases in the progressivity of the tax schedule are associated with long-run distributions with greater aggregate income, wealth, and labor input. Average hours generally declines as the tax schedule becomes more progressive implying that the economy substitutes away from less-productive workers toward more-productive workers. Finally, as progressivity increases, income inequality is reduced and wealth inequality rises. Many of these results are qualitatively different than those found in models with idiosyncratic risk, and therefore suggest closer attention should be paid to modeling the insurance opportunities of households.

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  • Carroll, Daniel R. & Young, Eric R., 2011. "The long run effects of changes in tax progressivity," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 35(9), pages 1451-1473, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:dyncon:v:35:y:2011:i:9:p:1451-1473
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Cruz Echevarría, 2015. "Income tax progressivity, growth, income inequality and welfare," SERIEs: Journal of the Spanish Economic Association, Springer;Spanish Economic Association, vol. 6(1), pages 43-72, March.
    2. Daniel R. Carroll, 2013. "The demand for income tax progressivity in the growth model," Working Paper 1106, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.
    3. Saif asif Khan & Sajawal Khan, 2011. "Optimal Taxation, Inflation and the Formal and Informal Sectors," SBP Working Paper Series 40, State Bank of Pakistan, Research Department.
    4. Richard Blundell & Luigi Pistaferri & Itay Saporta-Eksten, 2016. "Consumption Inequality and Family Labor Supply," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 106(2), pages 387-435, February.
    5. Wang, Wei & Suen, Richard M. H., 2015. "Diversity and Economic Growth in a Model with Progressive Taxation," MPRA Paper 67569, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. Echevarría, Cruz A., 2012. "Income tax progressivity, physical capital, aggregate uncertainty and long-run growth in an OLG economy," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 34(4), pages 955-974.

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