Research

Job Market Paper

The Impact of Single Sales Factor Apportionment on State Tax Revenues: Short- and Long-Run Effects
Download PDF

Since 1978, forty U.S. states changed the formulas determining their corporate income tax bases. The most common change has been from a definition of taxable corporate income consisting of payroll, property, and sales within the state, to one consisting solely of sales (``Single Sales Factor Apportionment"). This paper estimates the effects of these changes on a state’s taxable corporate income. Descriptive evidence suggests that taxable corporate income increases initially following the policy adoption; however, using a combination of two-way fixed effects, difference-in-differences, and synthetic approaches, I estimate that corporate income generally remains unchanged or declines over time, with most effects negative but statistically insignificant.

Additionally, here is a copy of supplemental plots:
Download Plot Appendix (PDF)

Tobacco Tariffs in the Colonial Chesapeake

From 1616 through the Revolutionary War (1775–1783), colonial governors and the English Crown levied tariffs on tobacco produced and exported from the colonies of Maryland and Virginia. The colonies imposed export tariffs, and England imposed import tariffs. Tariffs provided revenue for colonial administration and defense and, in its peak year, represented about 7 percent of English tax revenue. In this paper I analyze how export and import tariffs affected the price and volume of tobacco trade between colonial Maryland and Virginia and England, as well as the distribution of the burden of those tariffs. Although the point estimate suggests elastic demand, it is imprecisely estimated. Elasticity-based incidence estimates indicate that approximately 89 percent of the tariff burden was borne by consumers in Europe, allowing the Crown to raise revenue without significantly discouraging colonial production or migration. These estimates illuminate the fiscal constraints faced by the British Crown and provide context on one of the financial incentives for Britain's decision to sustain control of the colonies through the Revolutionary War.

This research was supported by an Early-Stage Dissertation Grant from the Economic History Association.

Tax Abatements for Data Centers and Government Output: Short-Run Effects on Public Sector Activity

State and local governments use tax abatements to attract data centers, which are capital-intensive facilities with relatively low employment. Prior research on tax incentives has documented positive and negative spillovers depending upon the duration of the firm's tenure, the size of the abatement or subsidy, and the type of firm. This paper estimates the effects of data center location on local government and sector-specific output per capita from attracting data centers through tax abatements. Using a panel dataset of 135 tax abatements granted by 44 counties in 20 states over the past 20 years, I estimate that a tax abatement for a data center led to an increase in government sector output in the year following the incentive. This increase persists into the second year, suggesting modest short-term fiscal changes to the locality.

Dissertation

Borders and Burdens: Three Essays on Inter-jurisdictional Tax Policy in America
Link to Dissertation