Partisan influence on the local tax burden in the Netherlands

This paper analyses the role of partisan politics in determining the local tax burden. Property taxes are the most important revenue source which municipalities in the Netherlands can decide upon themselves. Using a new data set on Dutch local property taxes in 1996, it is concluded that municipalities with a council dominated by left wing parties have a higher tax burden. We also find that larger coalitions have lower levels of taxation. Finally, tax exporting increases tax rates.