Electronic Tax Filing and Spatial Patterns of Technology Diffusion

Abstract

This paper reports estimates of the trends and patterns in electronic tax filing behaviors in the United States over the period of 1999 – 2013. Based on an initial analysis of IRS tax return data, I find dynamic trends in tax reporting among states and regions. Southeastern states (AL, AR, GA, LA, MS, SC, TN) were early adopters with a higher rate of electronic tax returns, while Midwest states (ND, SD, NE, KS, WY) were later adopters. To further examine how socioeconomics status affects the trends and patterns in electronic tax filing behaviors, I run pooled OLS and panel regressions. The results indicate that access to the internet, age, race, poverty, and education all affect the adoption behavior.

Tax Rate and Tax Administration Obstacles to Business Operations: An Exploration from Panel Data in Transition Countries

Abstract

This paper examines whether the tax system is an obstacle to business operations in transition countries. I use the Business Environment and Enterprise Performance Survey (BEEPS) rounds IV-V panel data collected by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). This panel dataset is a firm-level survey of a representative sample in 28 transition countries of Eastern Europe and Central Asia and allows identification of individual enterprises around 2008 and 2013 onwards. The descriptive statistics from the panel data shed light on evidence that the firms participating in the survey responded tax rates and tax administration have been lesser obstacles in 2013 compared to the previous years. To understand this change in firms’ responses to the survey questionnaires, I analyze what economic and circumstances affect the perception of the tax obstacles to business operations. Utilizing ordered probit models, I show the empirical evidence that a change in both the country-specific and firm’s individual characteristics affect the responses to the survey. In addition, I investigate whether the firm’s perception to tax obstacles in 2008 affects hours to prepare and pay taxes, number of tax payments, or how much time the firm is inspected by tax officials in 2013. The causality analysis finds that firms responding to the questionnaire of tax administration is an obstacle to their business spending more time to prepare and pay taxes, having a higher number of tax payments, and are more visited or inspected by tax officials in a survey 5 years later.

Impact of proximity to Regional Markets on Property Value: A Complementary Approach to the Analysis

Abstract

I examine how proximity to an ethanol plant influences property values in Central Nebraska for 2011-2014. I conduct a case study using micro-level data on parcels and properties. In contrast to previous studies on land use and property values, which heavily rely on detailed surveys of agricultural producers, I consult the widely available GIS databases in order to access relevant data on properties, including detailed data available on characteristics of parcels in Nebraska. A hedonic model employed accounts for specific characteristics of the local processing markets for grains, measuring the spatial effect of animal food manufacturers and livestock on property value as well as the effect of ethanol plants. I conclude that property value in the region is substantially affected by proximity to ethanol plants.

Climate Change Impacts the Subsurface Transport of Trace Organics Originating from Agricultural Production Activities

Abstract

Climate change will impact soil properties such as soil moisture, organic carbon and temperature and changes in these properties will influence the sorption, bio-degradation and leaching of trace organic contaminants to groundwater. In this study, we conducted a modeling case study to evaluate atrazine and estrone transport in the subsurface under current and future climate conditions at a field site in central Nebraska. According to the modeling results, the leaching rate of estrone in the domain was found to be considerably lower than atrazine. The leaching rate was higher under past climate conditions compared to the future climate for both atrazine and estrone. Reduced infiltration of trace organic compounds may indicate lower trace organic concentrations in groundwater may occur under future climate scenarios.

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