Sanitation and property tax compliance: Analyzing the social contract in Brazil

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Kresch, Evan Plous; Walker, Mark; Best, Michael Carlos; Gerard, Francois; Naritomi, Joana
• 署名单位: University System of Ohio; Oberlin College; Columbia University; Centre for Economic Policy Research - UK; National Bureau of Economic Research; University of London; Queen Mary University London; University of London; London School Economics & Political Science
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0304-3878
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jdeveco.2022.102954
• 发表日期: 2023
• 关键词: sanitation; property tax; Social contract; tax compliance; BRAZIL

摘要

This paper investigates the role that sanitation plays in upholding the social contract, whereby citizens pay taxes in exchange for governments providing goods and services. We study the case of Manaus, Brazil, where sewer connections vary considerably across the city and property taxes are calculated in a presumptive manner that does not account for a household's access to sanitation. We find that households with access to the city sewer system are significantly more likely to pay their property tax, relative to households that only have access to latrines or lack access to improved sanitation entirely. Our evidence is consistent with a role for the social contract in this decision, as households with sewer systems are more likely to have positive attitudes towards the municipal government.