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The Political Economy of Taxation in Latin America

Gustavo A. Flores-Macías (Cornell University, New York)

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English
Cambridge University Press
24 February 2022
Paying taxes is one of the least popular activities worldwide. Latin America in particular is notorious for having low direct taxes, weak compliance and enforcement, and high levels of inequality. Although fiscal extraction has gained renewed interest among governments in recent years, with the end of the commodity boom adding special urgency, the successful adoption and implementation of tax reforms is easier said than done, even when tax policy prescriptions are widely shared. This volume provides the first comprehensive, region-wide assessment of the role of political factors, including public opinion, democratic institutions, natural resources, interest groups, political ideology, and state capacity. What explains the region's low levels of taxation? What explains the low progressivity in its tax structure? And what explains considerable differences across countries? In addressing these questions, each of the volume's chapters makes original theoretical and empirical contributions toward understanding how to overcome the political challenges to taxation.

Edited by:  
Imprint:   Cambridge University Press
Country of Publication:   United Kingdom
Edition:   New edition
Dimensions:   Height: 228mm,  Width: 152mm,  Spine: 17mm
Weight:   440g
ISBN:   9781108464994
ISBN 10:   1108464998
Pages:   283
Publication Date:  
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Undergraduate
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
1. Introduction: the political economy of taxation in Latin America Gustavo Flores-Macías; 2. The political economy of oil taxation in Latin America: policy volatility and untapped potential Francisco Monaldi; 3. Economic growth and tax compliance in Latin America Marcelo Bergman; 4. Path dependence, power resources, and the magnitude of the tax burden in Latin America Gabriel Ondetti; 5. Federalism and taxation: patterns of international insertion in Brazil Aaron Schneider; 6. Do particularistic institutions affect tax neutrality in Latin America? Mark Hallerberg and Carlos Scartascini; 7. Taxing Latin American economic elites Tasha Fairfield; 8. Weak liberalism and weak property taxation in Latin America James Mahon, Jr; 9. Preferences for redistribution and tax burdens Juan Bogliaccini and Juan Pablo Luna; 10. Conclusion: addressing taxation's political challenges Gustavo Flores-Macías.

Gustavo A. Flores-Macías is Associate Professor of Government at Cornell University, New York. He is the author of After Neoliberalism: The Left and Economic Reforms in Latin America (2012), which received the Latin American Studies Association Tomasinni Book Award. He is a faculty fellow at Cornell's Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future and core faculty at the Cornell Institute for Public Affairs. In 2017–18, he was the recipient of Princeton University's Democracy and Development Fellowship.

Reviews for The Political Economy of Taxation in Latin America

'This is a much-needed volume on the political underpinning of taxation in Latin America. It provides crucial contributions to understand the political factors explaining the relative low levels of taxation in the region as well as variation across countries. This very important book is a must-read both for scholars of comparative political economy and Latin American politics as well as for practitioners seeking to understand the possibilities of fiscal reforms that can help the region build more effective states.' Maria Victoria Murillo, Columbia University, New York 'Notwithstanding a growing body of literature on state capacity, income inequality, and problems of democracy in Latin America, we still know surprisingly little about how governments in the region tax their populations. This volume brings together theoretical and empirical contributions by some of the leading scholars in the field, and goes a considerable distance towards filling this gap.' Robert R. Kaufman, Distinguished Professor of Political Science, Rutgers University, New Jersey 'No reader of the volume will come away empty-handed. All the chapters make it clear that Latin America taxes little, badly, and unfairly.' Comparative Politics


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