Redistributive Taxation and Personal Bankruptcy in U.S. States
Journal
Journal of Law and Economics
ISSN
0022-2186
ISSN-Digital
1537-5285
Type
journal article
Date Issued
2009-08
Author(s)
Abstract
Personal bankruptcy regulation and redistributive taxes and transfers vary considerably across U.S. states and over time. Our hypothesis is that both policies are imperfect substitutes in insuring consumption of risk?averse agents in incomplete markets. Exploiting data variation over time for 18 U.S. states for the period 1980-2003, we find considerable support for this hypothesis: redistributive taxation and bankruptcy exemptions are negatively correlated, and both policies are associated with more equal consumption growth.
Language
English
Keywords
Redistributive Taxation
Personal Bankruptcy in US States
HSG Classification
contribution to scientific community
HSG Profile Area
SEPS - Economic Policy
Refereed
Yes
Publisher
The University of Chicago Press
Volume
52
Number
3
Start page
445
End page
467
Pages
23
Subject(s)
Eprints ID
235078