Time to Adoption of Local Option Sales Taxes: An Examination of Texas Municipalities

This study examines the time to adoption of municipal local option sales taxes (LOSTs) in Texas from 1967 to 2012. General-purpose LOSTs were introduced in 1968 and were the only LOSTs available to local governments until 1988, when four earmarked LOSTs were permitted for municipalities. Counties and special districts were also allowed to adopt LOSTs beginning in 1988. Using a Cox proportional hazard model and a variation that allows for repeating events, this study finds that proximity to major highways and state and national borders and LOST rates within and around a municipality affect time to adoption