Stockholm University’s Laura Montenbruck wins IIPF Young Economists Award for study on tax compliance and public services

Stockholm University’s Laura Montenbruck wins IIPF Young Economists Award for study on tax compliance and public services

(IN BRIEF) Laura Montenbruck, Assistant Professor of Economics at Stockholm University, has been awarded the IIPF Young Economists Award for her study on tax compliance in Sierra Leone. Her research, published under the title “Fiscal Exchange and Tax Compliance: Strengthening the Social Contract Under Low State Capacity,” involved nearly 5,500 households and demonstrated that providing clear information about public services increases the likelihood of paying property taxes by around 20 percent. The effect was especially strong among households in lower-value properties. The International Institute of Public Finance presented the award during its 2025 conference in Nairobi, recognising Montenbruck’s innovative and policy-relevant contribution to public economics.

(PRESS RELEASE) STOCKHOLM, 26-Sept-2025 — /EuropaWire/ — Laura Montenbruck, Assistant Professor in Economics at Stockholm University, has been awarded the IIPF Young Economists Award, a prestigious recognition presented annually by the International Institute of Public Finance. The award highlights her research on how strengthening the connection between public services and taxation can improve citizens’ willingness to pay taxes.

Her award-winning article, “Fiscal Exchange and Tax Compliance: Strengthening the Social Contract Under Low State Capacity”, is based on an extensive field experiment in Freetown, Sierra Leone. The study engaged 5,494 property owners and tenants, focusing on whether providing clear information about public service delivery influences tax compliance.

The findings reveal that when citizens are given transparent information about which services their taxes fund, the probability of paying property taxes rises by an average of 20 percent. The impact is particularly pronounced among households in lower-value properties, where the likelihood of compliance increased by 7–16 percentage points when services were both nearby and directly met residents’ most pressing needs.

By shedding light on the importance of fiscal transparency and service delivery, Montenbruck’s research underscores how governments in countries with low state capacity can foster stronger social contracts and improve tax compliance.

The award was formally presented at the IIPF annual conference in Nairobi, Kenya, held from 20–22 August, where young scholars are recognised for innovative and policy-relevant contributions to public economics.

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SOURCE: Stockholm University