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Gender Equality, Tax Policies, and Tax Reform in Comparative Perspective

This symposium focused on the gender dimensions of tax policy and tax reforms in countries at different levels of development. Topics included gender biases in direct taxation (including biases in individual and joint filing) and the structure of exemptions, deductions, and allowances; gender biases in indirect taxation, including VAT and excise or sales taxes; the impact of personal income taxation on labor supply, household production, and time use; gender issues in tax reform and fiscal centralization; and methodological issues in tax-burden and tax-incidence analysis from a gender perspective.

The symposium was convened as part of the Gender Equality and the Economy (GEE) program at The Levy Economics Institute. The program considers how economic processes and policies affect gender equality, and how existing gender inequalities influence economic outcomes. GEE stimulates reexamination of key economic concepts, models, and indicators—with a particular view to reformulating policy—and offers a broader view of what an economy is and how it functions. The purpose of the program is to contribute knowledge that improves women's status and helps them realize their rights in the United States and other countries.

“Gender Equality, Tax Policies, and Tax Reform in Comparative Perspective” was held May 17–18, 2006, at the Levy Institute’s research and conference center at Blithewood on the campus of Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, N.Y.