As regards the taxation variable, Herb classifies Morocco and Jordan
as the only Arab monarchies that are not rentier states. The Saudi state
floats on a sea of oil money and citizens pay no personal income tax.
Morocco has a progressive tax structure that reaches 38 percent at the
top level of income. With its need to tax its citizens, the Moroccan monarchy
has a classic point of contact for striking bargains with society of
the sort that furthered democracy in Western Europe. There is no such
contact point in Saudi Arabia.