Youssef Benzarti

Youssef Benzarti is an Associate Professor of Economics at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), affiliated with the College of Letters & Science. He also serves as a Faculty Research Fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) and directs UCSB's Tax Policy Lab. His work focuses on tax policy design, public finance, and labor economics, with a particular emphasis on tax incidence, VAT effects, and regulatory impacts.

Research interests include analyzing how tax policies influence economic behavior, firm performance, and consumer welfare. Key areas of investigation include asymmetric tax incidence, international trade flows under VAT regimes, and the role of administrative burdens in tax compliance. His research often bridges theoretical frameworks with empirical evidence from large-scale policy experiments.

Publications span topics like VAT cuts' inflation mitigation, payroll tax impacts during recessions, and the interplay between social insurance mandates and entrepreneurship. His work has been featured in outlets such as the LA Times, Bloomberg, and the Economic Report of the President. He has also acted as an expert witness in high-profile legal cases, including Federal Trade Commission vs H&R Block.

Advising and grants: While specific student names are not listed, his roles in academic and policy institutions suggest active involvement in mentoring. His Tax Policy Lab collaborates on applied research to inform fiscal policy decisions.

Labs/teams: Leads UCSB's Tax Policy Lab and collaborates with NBER's Public Economics program to advance research on tax systems, regulatory frameworks, and economic equity.