A Case for Higher Public Spending

Studies by psychologists, sociologists, and economists indicate that increases in incomes beyond a moderate level are not related to happiness nor significantly with the objective quality-of-life indicators (which increase with scientific and technological breakthroughs at the global level). Yet everyone wants more money. This may be explained by environmental disruption, relative-income effects, inadequate recognition of adaptation effects, and the materialistic bias due to our accumulation instinct and advertising. These factors cause a bias towards private consumption, making public spending, especially on research and environmental protection (with their long-term and global public-good nature) well below optimal. This is made worse by economists’ emphasis on the excess burden of taxation, ignoring the negative excess burden on the spending side. As Kaplow argues, if taxes are raised in accordance to the benefits of the funded public goods at the respective income levels, no disincentive effects are involved.

‘OVERLOAD’ POTRET TRANSPORTASI ANGKUTAN BARANG DALAM KARYA STREET PHOTOGRAPHY

Humans are creatures that are able to move and move from one place to another. Long before the wheel was discovered as part of the means of human transportation, animals and livestock such as horses, cows, camels and even elephants were used as a means of transportation. Apart from being a tool to speed up and lighten the travel time of these animals, sometimes the burden is attached to the rider. After the wheels were found, humans made transport vehicles that functioned as places for passengers and goods which were then pulled by animals so that the loads carried became more efficient and more efficient. Along with the development of time from time to time until finally motorized vehicles were found, the distance between the movement of people and goods was getting farther, more numerous and faster. Humans can move freely with current road facilities and adequate facilities. Almost everyone today can afford a vehicle from a bicycle to a plane depending on the abilities and needs of each individual. Movement or mobilization is not only human but also goods. Movable goods clearly require transportation assistance and humans as the perpetrators and are supported by the ease of road facilities and infrastructure. Each vehicle created has its own specifications and specifications, be it designation, capacity and recommended load. For example, passenger vehicles are not allowed to carry goods and vice versa. Especially if it is related to the recommended load capacity, whether it is a passenger vehicle or goods, it will clearly affect the safety of both the driver, passengers and luggage. Seeing the tendency in Indonesia, things related to the transportation function and discipline are often violated, the writer and photographer in this study is interested in the theme of 'overload', namely the portrait of transportation, especially freight transport in Indonesia, which is often seen carrying excess burden or over capacity in street / Street photography works. Photography Keywords: Street Photography, Transportation, Street Photography

Discrete Prices and the Incidence and Efficiency of Excise Taxes

This paper uses UPC-level data to examine the relationship between excise taxes, retail prices, and consumer welfare in the distilled spirits market. We document a nominal rigidity in retail prices that arises because firms largely choose prices that end in 99 cents and change prices in whole-dollar increments. A correctly specified model, like an ordered logit, takes this discreteness into account when predicting the effects of alternative taxes. Explicitly accounting for price points substantially impacts estimates of tax incidence and the excess burden cost of tax revenue. Meaningful nonmonotonicities in these quantities expand the potential considerations in setting excise taxes. (JEL H22, H71, L11, L66)

Inferring Tax Compliance from Pass-Through: Evidence from Airbnb Tax Enforcement Agreements

Tax enforcement is especially costly when market participants are difficult to observe. The benefits of enforcement depend crucially on pre-enforcement compliance. We derive an upper bound on pre-enforcement compliance from the pass-through of newlyenforced taxes. Using data on Airbnb listings and the platform's voluntary collection agreements, we find that taxes are paid on, at most, 24 percent of Airbnb transactions prior to enforcement. We also find that demand for Airbnb listings is inelastic, driving three key insights: the tax burden falls disproportionately on renters, excess burden is small, and tax enforcement is relatively ineffective at reducing local Airbnb activity.