Beliefs about political equality prevent consensus for progressive taxes

The United States and other wealthy democracies during the past century have rarely responded to rising economic inequality by enacting more progressive tax policies, according to a new study co-authored by Yale political scientist Kenneth Scheve. The study, published in the journal Comparative Political Studies , provides evidence that a widespread belief among voters that government should treat all citizens equally regardless of economic advantage or disadvantage helps explain why countries often do not raise tax rates on the rich in response to rising inequality. The findings are based on survey experiments in the United States, United Kingdom, and Germany. It's clear that many voters have a vision of political equality based on equal-treatment norms that opposes progressive tax policies. Kenneth Scheve - Progressive taxation is a powerful policy tool for responding to rising inequality, but we found that wealthy democracies don't resort to it very often,- said Scheve, the Dean Acheson Professor of Political Science and Global Affairs in Yale's Faculty of Arts and Sciences. -We identify belief in equal treatment norms - the idea that governments should treat people equally - as a key driver of reluctance to enact progressive tax policies. Many people perceive taxing the rich at higher rates than others as a violation of this norm.