The measurement of global tax progressivity has been extensively debated over the last decade. We find that the debate stems from a failure to fully recognize the role of the average tax burden. We demonstrate that, once the effect of the average tax burden is controlled for, the two major...

The fairness of a tax change is often judged by examining its impact on tax burdens or net incomes of different income classes. Two competing definitions of tax neutrality give surprisingly different and conflicting answers to the fairness question. If the objective is to maximize welfare, the...

This article investigates the effects of distributionally neutral tax changes on equity and efficiency using computational general equilibrium and stochastic dominance techniques. The authors find, for a tax increase, that the constant-tax-share definition is preferred both in terms of...

Simulation methods are used to investigate the cost-effectiveness and poverty-reducing effects of the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007 (FMWA). The data set is created by matching and merging the Annual Social and Economic Supplement (March CPS) with the Earner Study files, which contain the best...

This article uses the unique Taxpayer Compliance Measurement Program (TCMP) micro data to study the equity effects of noncompliance. The authors access 4 years of TCMP data: 1979, 1982, 1985, and 1988. The TCMP data allows the authors to observe income and taxes before and after a tax audit. To...

This article compares the degree of personal income tax progressivity in selected states and investigates the determinants of changes in progressivity through time. D. Suits's and N. C. Kakwani's recently proposed summary measures of tax progressivity are estimated and compared for twelve states...