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Second-Best Pollution Taxation and Environmental Quality

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  • Thomas Gaube

    (Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods, Bonn, Germany)

Abstract

This paper deals with second-best pollution taxation by investigating allocations instead of the corresponding tax rates. Assuming certain restrictions on utility and that the marginal revenue from environmental taxation is positive, it is shown that environmental quality is higher in second best where only distortionary taxes are used to finance public expenditures than in the first-best optimum where lump-sum taxes are available.

Suggested Citation

  • Thomas Gaube, 2005. "Second-Best Pollution Taxation and Environmental Quality," Discussion Paper Series of the Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods 2005_9, Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods.
    • Handle: RePEc:mpg:wpaper:2005_09
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Roberton C. Williams III, 2002. "Tax Normalizations, the Marginal Cost of Funds, and Optimal Environmental Taxes," Chapters, in: Lawrence H. Goulder (ed.), Environmental Policy Making in Economies with Prior Tax Distortions, chapter 12, pages 194-199, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    2. A. Lans Bovenberg & Frederick van der Ploeg, 2002. "Environmental Policy, Public Finance and the Labour Market in a Second-Best World," Chapters, in: Lawrence H. Goulder (ed.), Environmental Policy Making in Economies with Prior Tax Distortions, chapter 6, pages 112-153, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    3. de Bovenberg, A Lans & Mooij, Ruud A, 1994. "Environmental Levies and Distortionary Taxation," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 84(4), pages 1085-1089, September.
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    6. Lee, Dwight R. & Misiolek, Walter S., 1986. "Substituting pollution taxation for general taxation: Some implications for efficiency in pollutions taxation," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 13(4), pages 338-347, December.
    7. Metcalf, Gilbert E., 2003. "Environmental levies and distortionary taxation:: Pigou, taxation and pollution," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(2), pages 313-322, February.
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    9. Ian W.H. Parry, 2002. "Pollution Taxes and Revenue Reycling," Chapters, in: Lawrence H. Goulder (ed.), Environmental Policy Making in Economies with Prior Tax Distortions, chapter 15, pages 235-248, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    10. Arrow, Kenneth & Bolin, Bert & Costanza, Robert & Dasgupta, Partha & Folke, Carl & Holling, C.S. & Jansson, Bengt-Owe & Levin, Simon & Mäler, Karl-Göran & Perrings, Charles & Pimentel, David, 1996. "Economic growth, carrying capacity, and the environment," Environment and Development Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 1(1), pages 104-110, February.
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    12. Bovenberg, A Lans & de Mooij, Ruud A, 1997. "Environmental Levies and Distortionary Taxation: Reply," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 87(1), pages 252-253, March.
    13. Gaube, Thomas, 2000. "When do distortionary taxes reduce the optimal supply of public goods?," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 76(2), pages 151-180, May.
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    Cited by:

    1. Hakenes, Hendrik & Schnabel, Isabel, 2006. "The Threat of Capital Drain: A Rationale for Public Banks?," Discussion Paper Series of SFB/TR 15 Governance and the Efficiency of Economic Systems 107, Free University of Berlin, Humboldt University of Berlin, University of Bonn, University of Mannheim, University of Munich.
    2. Susanne Soretz, 2007. "Efficient Dynamic Pollution Taxation in an Uncertain Environment," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 36(1), pages 57-84, January.
    3. Yu Liu & Rong-Lin Li & Yang Song & Zhi-Jiang Zhang, 2019. "The Role of Environmental Tax in Alleviating the Impact of Environmental Pollution on Residents’ Happiness in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(22), pages 1-11, November.
    4. Fullerton, Don & Kim, Seung-Rae, 2008. "Environmental investment and policy with distortionary taxes, and endogenous growth," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 56(2), pages 141-154, September.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    environmental taxation; public goods;

    JEL classification:

    • H21 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Efficiency; Optimal Taxation
    • H41 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods - - - Public Goods

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