American Economic Journal:
Economic Policy
ISSN 1945-7731 (Print) | ISSN 1945-774X (Online)
My Taxes Are Too Darn High: Why Do Households Protest Their Taxes?
American Economic Journal: Economic Policy
vol. 17,
no. 1, February 2025
(pp. 273–310)
Abstract
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.Citation
Nathan, Brad, Ricardo Perez-Truglia, and Alejandro Zentner. 2025. "My Taxes Are Too Darn High: Why Do Households Protest Their Taxes?" American Economic Journal: Economic Policy 17 (1): 273–310. DOI: 10.1257/pol.20220768Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- C93 Field Experiments
- D91 Micro-Based Behavioral Economics: Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making
- G51 Household Finance: Household Saving, Borrowing, Debt, and Wealth
- H71 State and Local Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue
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