Effective from 2008, Germany´s top marginal income tax rate rises from 42 to 45 per cent. However, sole proprietorships and partnerships can opt for a preferential tax rate of 28.25 per cent for retained profits are taxed again upon distribution (§ 34a EStG-E). If they do so, profits are taxed...

This paper makes a fresh attempt at characterizing optimal commoditytaxes. Under the usual assumptions, an extremely simple expressionof second-best commodity taxes is derived, showing tax rates as functions ofobservable variables only, rather than as functions of unobservable variablessuch as...

Until 2004, German long-term unemployed received a tax-financed benefit (Arbeitslosenhilfe)which exceeded social assistance for the disabled (Sozialhilfe). This has beenchanged by the recent reform known as “Hartz IV”: Effective from 2005, long-termunemployed on the one hand (who are no more...

The rational prodigality argument, which often serves to justify social security,is considered in a second-best tax framework with endogenous labor supply. Rationalprodigality renders the familiar policies time inconsistent. We analyze time consistentpolicies and show that a wage tax suffices to...