This paper estimates the incidence of state corporate taxes using new data and methods for estimating the effects on profits. We extend Suarez Serrato and Zidar (2016) by developing two new identification approaches that use the effects of business taxes on the labor demand of incumbent firms...

This paper studies commodity taxation in a general model featuring imperfect competition and tax salience. We derive new formulas for the incidence and marginal excess burden of commodity taxation, and we estimate the necessary inputs to the formulas by combining Nielsen Retail Scanner data from...

Most of the focus of recent stabilization policy research and practice has been on monetary rather than fiscal policy. This paper explores how, given the limits on monetary policy, fiscal policy could play a larger role. It explores the use of quasi-automatic stabilizers, i.e. changes in taxes...

When the zero lower bound on nominal interest rate binds, monetary policy makers may lack traditional tools to stimulate aggregate demand. We investigate whether "unconventional" fiscal policy, in the form of pre-announced consumption tax changes, has the potential to meaningfully shift durables...

A universal fact of firm-level data is that investment is lumpy: firms either replace a considerable fraction of their existing capital (spike) or do not invest at all (inaction). This paper incorporates the lumpy nature of investment into the study of how tax policy affects investment behavior....

One of the most fundamental questions in public finance is who bears the burden of taxes -- the incidence of taxation.' Our understanding of incidence from an empirical standpoint is quite meager. Indeed, there seems to be little evidence even in the case that is theoretically the easiest --...

A common objection to "sin taxes"--corrective taxes on goods that are thought to be overconsumed, such as cigarettes, alcohol, and sugary drinks--is that they often fall disproportionately on low-income consumers. This paper studies the interaction between corrective and redistributive motives...

With the increase in fuel economy of the personal transportation fleet along with the increased penetration of hybrid and electric vehicles, federal motor vehicle fuel excise tax revenue has been steadily declining. This has led to calls for finding a replacement for this tax. One option is to...

This paper considers questions about the implications of rising inequality for the theory and practice of public finance. It begins by addressing fundamental reasons why the distribution of income or wealth on an annual basis before taxes and transfers offers insufficient information: (1) it...