Abstract

CHAVEZ MAZA, Luis Augusto. Desistimiento fiscal, incertidumbre y propiedad social en los municipios de México. Región y sociedad [online]. 2014, vol.26, n.61, pp.87-117. ISSN 2448-4849.

This article analyzes factors that may explain why some Mexican municipal governments cease collecting property taxes. Based on panel data analysis, evidence indicates that municipalities with a predominance of communal lands are less likely to collect property taxes, compared to those with a predominance of private lands. Communal lands are shared by a group of people, who create an assembly to distribute possession rights for an undefined period. Therefore, the municipality cannot legitimately charge a tax on the property, since the community does not recognize its authority to assign or remove rights, and identifying contributors and the amounts they owe is complicated. In addition, not collecting taxes can be an instrument of countercyclical policy in times of economic crisis, or a strategy to help win elections.

Keywords : uncollected taxes; municipal government; econometric panel data analysis; common property; uncertainty.

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