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Taxation and Equitable Economic Development: A Historical Note

Those that consider taxes as the enemies of growth and individual liberty maintain that the lower the taxes, the better. Others believe that because taxes finance public spending, they can improve the lives of citizens and help solve many of a country’s social problems. There is no question that tax levels can be too high or too  low, and views about the “optimal” level of taxation have changed over the years.  Levels that would have been considered high a half century ago are now no longer considered sufficient.

In “Taxation and Equitable Economic Development: A Historical Note,” Vito Tanzi, former director of the Fiscal Affairs Department of the International Monetary Fund, explores in historical perspective the issue of the desirable level of taxation. Tanzi discusses how the tax systems of most Latin American countries have changed over the last half-century and the extent to which changes in the levels and the structures of those systems offer positive or disappointing results.

Tanzi argues that while there have been significant changes in the tax structures of most Latin American countries, for the most part taxes have not become progressive enough to make a contribution to reducing income inequality.

The paper emphasizes that higher taxes are especially desirable when governments can use the higher revenue well. This, unfortunately, is not always the case. The paper concludes that a low level of taxation in a country is not, in and of itself, an indication that higher taxes would be desirable.
 

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About the Author

Vito Tanzi

Former director of the IMF Fiscal Affairs Department
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Latin America Program

The Wilson Center’s prestigious Latin America Program provides non-partisan expertise to a broad community of decision makers in the United States and Latin America on critical policy issues facing the Hemisphere. The Program provides insightful and actionable research for policymakers, private sector leaders, journalists, and public intellectuals in the United States and Latin America. To bridge the gap between scholarship and policy action, it fosters new inquiry, sponsors high-level public and private meetings among multiple stakeholders, and explores policy options to improve outcomes for citizens throughout the Americas. Drawing on the Wilson Center’s strength as the nation’s key non-partisan policy forum, the Program serves as a trusted source of analysis and a vital point of contact between the worlds of scholarship and action.  Read more