Prior literature suggests that firms may bear reputational costs associated with corporate tax avoidance, which could in turn reduce the net present value of firms’ tax planning strategies. However, these studies do not consider the fact that firms may have opportunities to avoid tax in socially responsible ways. We investigate the equity valuation implications of one form of socially responsible tax avoidance: claiming the renewable electricity production tax credit (PTC). We predict and find that investors more positively value tax savings generated from PTCs compared to other forms of corporate tax avoidance, consistent with the notion that socially responsible tax avoidance should not subject firms to reputational costs. Additionally, consistent with the role that CSR can play in enhancing a firm’s reputational capital, we find evidence of a spillover effect in which investors more positively value other sources of tax avoidance to the extent the firm also reduces its taxes in a socially responsible way. Our results demonstrate the importance for managers to consider socially responsible tax avoidance as a component of a firm’s tax planning portfolio and for policymakers to recognize the appeal of socially responsible tax strategies as the reputational consequences of tax avoidance become more prominent.

先前的文献表明，公司可能承担与公司避税相关的声誉成本，这反过来又会降低公司税收筹划策略的净现值。然而，这些研究并未考虑企业可能有机会以对社会负责的方式避税这一事实。我们调查了一种对社会负责的避税形式对股权估值的影响：要求可再生电力生产税收抵免 (PTC)。我们预测并发现，与其他形式的公司避税相比，投资者更积极地重视 PTC 产生的税收节省，这与具有社会责任感的避税不应使公司承担声誉成本的观点一致。此外，与企业社会责任在提高公司声誉资本方面可以发挥的作用相一致，我们发现了溢出效应的证据，其中投资者更积极地重视其他避税来源，因为公司也以对社会负责的方式减税。我们的研究结果表明，对于管理者而言，将具有社会责任感的避税视为公司税收筹划组合的一个组成部分以及决策者在避税的声誉后果变得更加突出时认识到具有社会责任感的税收策略的吸引力的重要性。