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Internal migration and the effective price of state and local taxes

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  • Austin J. Drukker

    (Federal Trade Commission)

Abstract

This paper examines the mobility response of high-income households in the United States to a provision in a 2017 tax law that limited the federal deductibility of state and local taxes. The increase in the effective price of state and local taxes induced by the cap on deductibility caused high-income households to leave high-tax states in favor of low-tax states and to prefer low-tax states to high-tax states conditional on moving. The findings suggest that policymakers should take seriously the prospect that high-income taxpayers may flee states that tax them heavily, which could have long-lasting implications for states’ fiscal positions.

Suggested Citation

  • Austin J. Drukker, 2025. "Internal migration and the effective price of state and local taxes," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 32(1), pages 163-194, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:itaxpf:v:32:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1007_s10797-024-09828-x
    DOI: 10.1007/s10797-024-09828-x
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    State and local taxes; Deductibility; Tax price; Migration; Tax Cuts and Jobs Act;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • 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
    • H71 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - State and Local Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue
    • H73 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - Interjurisdictional Differentials and Their Effects

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