Data and Code for: Discrete Prices and the Incidence and Efficiency of Excise Taxes

Principal Investigator(s):  View help for Principal Investigator(s) Christopher Conlon, NYU Stern; Nirupama Rao, Univeristy of Michigan, Ross School of Business

Version:  View help for Version V2

Name File Type Size Last Modified
  PT Replication 03/05/2020 05:02:PM
  code 03/05/2020 04:00:PM
  outputs 03/05/2020 04:00:PM
  public_data 03/05/2020 04:01:PM
README.md text/x-web-markdown 3.4 KB 03/05/2020 10:59:AM
output.log text/x-log 19.5 KB 03/05/2020 10:59:AM
requirements.txt text/plain 76 bytes 03/05/2020 10:59:AM
run_all.sh application/x-sh 707 bytes 03/05/2020 10:59:AM
setup.R text/x-r-syntax 732 bytes 03/05/2020 10:59:AM

Project Citation: 

Conlon, Christopher, and Rao, Nirupama. Data and Code for: Discrete Prices and the Incidence and Efficiency of Excise Taxes. Nashville, TN: American Economic Association [publisher], 2020. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2020-10-26. https://doi.org/10.3886/E117326V2

Project Description

Summary:  View help for Summary 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 ninety-nine 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 non-monotonicities in these quantities expand the potential considerations in setting excise taxes.

Scope of Project

Subject Terms:  View help for Subject Terms Excise Tax; Incidence; Market power; Price Adjustment; Nominal Rigidities
JEL Classification:  View help for JEL Classification
      H21 Taxation and Subsidies: Efficiency; Optimal Taxation
Geographic Coverage:  View help for Geographic Coverage United States (Connecticut, Louisiana, Illinois)
Time Period(s):  View help for Time Period(s) 7/1/2007 – 7/31/2013
Collection Date(s):  View help for Collection Date(s) 7/2013 – 8/2013 (Summer 2013)
Universe:  View help for Universe Wholesale Alcohol Prices for Connecticut.
Data Type(s):  View help for Data Type(s) event/transaction data; program source code
Collection Notes:  View help for Collection Notes The Connecticut Wholesale Prices were scraped by the authors and assembled from public filings from the Department of Consumer Protection.

Methodology

Data Source:  View help for Data Source https://biznet.ct.gov/DCPOpenAccess/LiquorControl/ItemList.aspx
Unit(s) of Observation:  View help for Unit(s) of Observation Wholesaler-Product-Month

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Published Versions

V2 [2020-10-26]

V1 [2020-06-17]

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