Is There a Demand for Income Tax Progressivity?

9 Pages Posted: 22 Aug 2000

See all articles by Jean Hindriks

Jean Hindriks

University of London - School of Economics and Finance

Date Written: June 2000

Abstract

Recently Marhuenda and Ortuno-Ortin (1995) have provided a popular support for progressivity theorem that says that a marginal progressive tax always defeats a marginal regressive tax as long as individuals vote for the tax scheme minimizing their tax liabilities and the median income is less than the mean income. In this paper we provide, under similar circumstances, a popular support for regressivity theorem according to whichmore marginal regressivity (or less marginal progressivity) can always defeat any existing tax scheme. This move towards more regressivity (or less progressivity) is supported by the extremes of the income distribution. Combining this result with Marhuenda and Ortuno-Ortin result implies that vote cycling is inevitable and that the demand for progressivity cannot be established in the standard Downsian framework with self-interested voters.

Keywords: Voting, Redistribution, Income Tax Progresivity

JEL Classification: D72

Suggested Citation

Hindriks, Jean, Is There a Demand for Income Tax Progressivity? (June 2000). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=236827 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.236827

Jean Hindriks (Contact Author)

University of London - School of Economics and Finance ( email )

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