Understanding Citizen Attitudes Toward Municipal Taxation and Revenue Mobilisation
A Case Study ofNarsingdi Municipality
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.36609/bjpa.v33i1.1247Abstract
As Municipalities in Bangladesh struggle with low tax collection, insufficient internal
revenue, overdependence on central government, policies suggested by both Ministry
of LGRD and donor agency emphasize widening municipal tax base, implementing
progressive taxation, etc., aka internal revenue enhancement. However, democratic
municipalities face a dilemma reconciling these policies with public opinion,
necessitating an understanding of public perceptions toward existing taxation system
and revenue enhancement policies. This study reveals a predominantly negative public
perception regarding municipal tax justice and trust in municipal authorities, with
dissatisfaction evident in major services. Regarding support for increased tax liability,
a majority demonstrate non-antagonistic attitudes towards progressive taxation and rent
increased on vested property, with some actively endorsing these policies. Multiple
linear regression highlights that public support for greater tax liability is significantly
correlated only with the level of municipal services, while tax justice and trust in
authority show no statistically significant correlation. The study concludes that public
perception of the current tax system is predominantly negative and that revenue
enhancement policies, particularly progressive taxation and increased rent of vested
properties, find substantial support. Additionally, the level of municipal services
emerges as a crucial factor influencing public support for greater tax liability.
Downloads
Published
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Md Shoaib Hassan
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
- Copyright is retained by the author(s).
- Authors consent to publish the article and identify them as the original publisher.
- Authors also grant any third party the right to use the article freely as long as its integrity is maintained and its original authors, citation details and publisher are identified.
- The users can use, reuse and build upon the material published in the journal but only for non-commercial purposes.
- This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, adaptation, and reproduction in any medium, provided that the original work is properly cited.
