Honors Theses
Date of Award
2012
Document Type
Undergraduate Thesis
Department
Economics
First Advisor
William Shughart
Relational Format
Dissertation/Thesis
Abstract
This thesis evaluates the economic impact of targeted tax cuts in Tennessee. Specifically, I examine the Payment-In-Lieu-Of-Taxes (PILOT) Program in Memphis, TN Using economic data supplied from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis s Federal Economic Data and the Bureau of Labor Statistics, I consider the effectiveness of the program’s ability to improve economic conditions in Memphis, TN. The merits of a targeted tax cut program such as PILOT are often touted as the total number of jobs created and amount of dollars invested into the community. However, this method of counting the total number of jobs created overstates the amount of actual jobs created as a result of a new business. I evaluate whether or not the economic performance of Memphis has performed markedly better than that of the State of Tennessee as a whole. Using a less rigorous, more intuitive method, I examine whether a ‘displaced worker’ effect results from the granting of tax abatements to businesses in Memphis, TN. I examine whether the PILOT Program led to more workers relocating to Memphis from outside the metropolitan area in order to find work, or if workers from within Memphis and its adjacent counties switched jobs in order to take advantage of higher wage opportunities.
Recommended Citation
Morris, Norman Lee III, "Memphis Taxpayer Blues: An Economic Analysis of the Memphis PILOT Program" (2012). Honors Theses. 2240.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/hon_thesis/2240
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