Audits or Distortions: The Optimal Scheme to Enforce Self-Employment Income Taxes

I investigate the optimal auditing scheme for a revenue-maximizing tax-collection agency that observes not only reported prots, but also the level of employment at each firm. Each firm is owned by a single entrepreneur whose managerial ability is random. The optimal auditing scheme is discontinuous and non-monotone in ability. In intermediate audit costs, less-productive entrepreneurs face auditing probabilities that increase in ability, whereas the ablest ones are not audited. I argue that if the optimal auditing scheme were adopted in practice, net revenue collected from nonfarm sole proprietors would increase by at least 59 percent.

Targeting the Poor: A Macroeconomic Analysis of Cash Transfer Programs

This paper introduces cash transfers targeting the poor in an incomplete marketsmodel with heterogeneous agents facing idiosyncratic risk. These transfers change thedegree of insurance in the economy and a ect precautionary motives asymmetrically,leading the poorest households to decrease savings proportionally more than theirricher counterparts. In a model economy calibrated to Brazil, once the cash transferprogram is adopted, wealth inequality and social welfare increase, poverty decreases,while employment and income inequality remain about the same. Imperfect access to nancial markets is important for these results, whereas whether the program is fundedwith lump sum or distortive taxes is not.

Does crime affect economic decisions? An empirical investigation of savings in a high-crime environment

While most economic studies of crime have focused on its determinants, we study the reverse question: does crime affect economic behavior? Being such an important social phenomenon, one would expect crime to affect economic decisions. Using local data on crime rates and savings per capita in a high-crime environment, we document a striking empirical relationship: crime induces savings. Our paper is one of the first to successfully relate crime to an economic outcome. This result is robust to an extensive sensitivity analysis, which include: 1) controlling to a large set of demographic covariates; 2) accounting for the fact that crime and savings may be determined jointly; 3) measuring savings in different ways; 4) accounting for the presence of possible outliers; 5) weighting the data according to population; 6) accounting for spatial correlation; and, finally, 7) estimating the model for different sub-samples of cities. Our estimates indicate that only property, not violent, crime induces savings, which is consistent with the theoretical explanations on why crime would increase thriftinessCrime, Economic Behavior, Savings

The Coffee Market in Brazil: challenges and policy guidelines

This paper aims to analyze the coffee market in Brazil post-1990 (deregulation) highlighting the mains challenges in this agrichain. We’ve evaluated the Brazilian competitiveness position of this crop towards the most important competitors in the global market and draft some policy guidelines to enhance the Brazilian competitiveness, such as technology, certification, geographical indication, traceability and the strengthen of the quality and marketing of the Brazilian coffee

Potential of the bioeconomy for transforming food systems

Se busca identificar, analizar y visibilizar el papel que puede desempeñar la bioeconomía en el fortalecimiento y la transformación de los sistemas alimentarios, particularmente en América Latina y el Caribe. Se analiza el concepto de la bioeconomía, sus impulsores, enfoques de desarrollo sostenible y aportes de la bioeconomía a los ODS de la Agenda 2030; además se hace énfasis en las potencialidades de la bioeconomía; finalmente se analizan los retos, desafíos y la agenda pendiente en materia bioeconómica.It seeks to identify, analyze and make visible the role that the bioeconomy can play in strengthening and transforming food systems, particularly in Latin America and the Caribbean. The concept of the bioeconomy, its drivers, sustainable development approaches and contributions of the bioeconomy to the SDGs of the 2030 Agenda are analyzed; In addition, emphasis is placed on the potentialities of the bioeconomy; Finally, the challenges, challenges and the pending agenda in bioeconomic matters are analyzed.Busca identificar, analisar e tornar visível o papel que a bioeconomia pode desempenhar no fortalecimento e transformação dos sistemas alimentares, particularmente na América Latina e no Caribe. Analisa-se o conceito de bioeconomia, seus direcionadores, abordagens de desenvolvimento sustentável e contribuições da bioeconomia para os ODS da Agenda 2030; Além disso, a ênfase é colocada nas potencialidades da bioeconomia; Por fim, são analisados ​​os desafios, desafios e a agenda pendente em questões bioeconômicas

[pt] CRIME E POUPANÇA: TEORIA E EVIDÊNCIAS PARA O BRASIL

Esta dissertação documenta uma relação interessante: crime parece induzir poupança. Enquanto a literatura de economia do crime vem focando-se nos determinantes da criminalidade, esse estudo analisa a questão reversa: como o crime afeta decisões econômicas? Esta pergunta é interessante e importante, já que variáveis chaves podem ser influenciadas pela criminalidade. Usando dados no nível do município para o estado de São Paulo, encontramos que cidades com mais crimes também tem um nível de poupança mais alto. Esse resultado é robusto à endogeneidade do crime, diferentes medidas de poupança, e um grande número de controles demográficos. Mais ainda, esse padrão só surge quando considerado o crime contra o patrimônio, o que é consistente com a teoria desenvolvida no segundo capítulo dessa dissertação.This dissertation documents a striking relationship: crime appears to induce savings. While the crime literature has focused the determinants of crime, we study the reverse question: how does crime affect economic decisions? This question is interesting and important, for key economic variables can be influenced by crime. Using Brazilian city level data, we find that high crime cities also have high savings rates. The results are robust to endogeneity of crime, different measures of savings, and a large set of demographic controls. Furthermore, this pattern only arises when property crime is considered, which is consistent with the theory developed in the second chapter of this thesis

Optimal self-employment income tax enforcement

Most models of optimal income tax enforcement assume that income is either random or solely remunerates labor, neglecting that auditing strategies may depend on observable inputs. This paper outlines a model to optimally monitor self-employed entrepreneurs when, in addition to reported profits, the tax collection agency also observes the number of workers employed (or any other input variable) at each firm. We show that, by conditioning the monitoring strategy only on labor input, it is optimal for the IRS to audit firms in a way that generates some empirical regularities, like the missing middle. We also show that the optimal direct mechanism can be implemented by an indirect monitoring strategy that is consistent with actual IRS practices. In particular, the IRS calculates inputted income as function of labor. Whenever an entrepreneur reports profits that are lower than inputted income, she is randomly monitored. Finally, we formalize a model of optimal presumption taxation, in which inputted income is the tax base, to compare revenue collection across tax systems.Optimal auditing Tax evasion Informal sector Missing middle Entrepreneurship Presumptive taxation