The Etiology of Tax Complexity: Evidence from U.S. State Income Tax Systems

This article uses the variation in U.S. state income tax systems to examine what engenders tax complexity. An analysis of simple measures of the variation in complexity, based on the number of lines in the tax forms and the number of pages in the instruction booklets, reveals some intriguing patterns. States with more professional legislatures, as measured by the salaries paid, tend to have more complex tax systems, as do states with a less active voting population.