My Taxes Are Too Darn High: Why Do Households Protest Their Taxes?

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Nathan, Brad; Perez-truglia, Ricardo; Zentner, Alejandro
• 署名单位: Rutgers University System; Rutgers University New Brunswick; University of California System; University of California Los Angeles; University of Texas System; University of Texas Dallas
• 刊物名称: AMERICAN ECONOMIC JOURNAL-ECONOMIC POLICY
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1945-7731
• DOI: 10.1257/pol.20220768
• 发表日期: 2025
• 页码: 273-310
• 关键词: field experiment; Take-up; SALIENCE

摘要

In the United States and globally, taxpayers can file a protest to legally reduce their property taxes. While tax protests can provide a unique opportunity to study the (un)willingness to pay taxes, they have received little attention from researchers. Using a field experiment and a quasi-experiment, we study what motivates households to protest their property taxes. We find that both expected savings and filing frictions play significant roles. We estimate the magnitude of filing frictions using a money metric. We also discuss how low-cost interventions targeted at disadvantaged groups can mitigate existing disparities in the system of tax appeals. (JEL C93, D91, G51, H71)