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Taxing Uncertain Incomes

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  • Mirrlees, J A

Abstract

This paper studies nearly optimal income taxation when individuals are uncertain about their wages and when the government observes individual income with errors. Given the distribution of observed wage rates, it asks how the proportion of inequality known ex ante to individuals, or the proportion of observed inequality due to errors of observation, should affect optimal taxes. The taxes compared are nearly optimal for small inequality. First approximations to optimal taxes are found for these problems and also for the many-good optimal commodity tax problems. Among other results, it is found that wage uncertainty usually decreases the optimal earnings-tax rate and that errors of observation always do. Copyright 1990 by Royal Economic Society.

Suggested Citation

  • Mirrlees, J A, 1990. "Taxing Uncertain Incomes," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 42(1), pages 34-45, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:oxecpp:v:42:y:1990:i:1:p:34-45
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    Cited by:

    1. Brandon Lehr, 2016. "Optimal Social Insurance for Heterogeneous Agents With Private Insurance," Journal of Risk & Insurance, The American Risk and Insurance Association, vol. 83(2), pages 301-333, June.
    2. Chamley, Christophe, 2001. "Capital income taxation, wealth distribution and borrowing constraints," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 79(1), pages 55-69, January.
    3. Louis Kaplow, 2007. "Optimal income transfers," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 14(3), pages 295-325, June.
    4. Kaplow, Louis, 1996. "How Tax Complexity and Enforcement Affect the Equity and Efficiency of the Income Tax," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association;National Tax Journal, vol. 49(1), pages 135-150, March.
    5. Louis Kaplow, 1995. "How Tax Complexity and Enforcement Affect the Equity and Efficiency of The Income Tax," NBER Working Papers 5391, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    6. Helmuth Cremer & Pierre Pestieau, 1996. "Redistributive taxation and social insurance," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 3(3), pages 281-295, July.
    7. Thomas Eichner & Andreas Wagener, 2004. "The Welfare State in a Changing Environment," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 11(3), pages 313-331, May.
    8. Vasia Panousi & Catarina Reis, 2012. "Optimal capital taxation with idiosyncratic investment risk," Finance and Economics Discussion Series 2012-70, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.).
    9. Kaplow, Louis, 1996. "How Tax Complexity and Enforcement Affect the Equity and Efficiency of the Income Tax," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association, vol. 49(1), pages 135-50, March.
    10. Cremer, Helmuth & Gahvari, Firouz, 1995. "Uncertainty and optimal taxation: In defense of commodity taxes," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 56(2), pages 291-310, February.
    11. Dominique Henriet & Patrick Pintus & Alain Trannoy, 2014. "Is the Flat Tax Optimal under Income Risk?," AMSE Working Papers 1420, Aix-Marseille School of Economics, France, revised 30 May 2014.
    12. Jean‐Baptiste Michau, 2021. "On the Provision of Insurance against Search‐Induced Wage Fluctuations," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 123(1), pages 382-414, January.
    13. Edyta Małecka-Ziembińska & Radosław Ziembiński, 2020. "Application of Genetic Algorithm to Optimal Income Taxation," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-24, October.
    14. Hsu, Minchung & Yang, C.C., 2013. "Optimal linear and two-bracket income taxes with idiosyncratic earnings risk," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 105(C), pages 58-71.
    15. Alan D. Viard, 2001. "Some Results on the Comparative Statics of Optimal Categorical Transfer Payments," Public Finance Review, , vol. 29(2), pages 148-180, March.
    16. Sanjit Dhami, 2002. "Optimal Consumption Taxes and Social Security Under Tax Measurement Problems and Uncertainty," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 9(6), pages 673-685, November.

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