This paper studies the design of tax systems that implement a planner's second-best allocation in a market economy. An … example shows that the widely used Mirrleesian (1976) tax system cannot implement all incentive-compatible allocations … tax system. However, this tax system is often undesirable since it severely restricts the choice space of agents in the …

We characterize the second-best allocation in a Mirrleesian optimal tax model where agents differ in multiple … dimensions and the planner can tax multiple goods non-linearly. We develop a new method that allows us to solve the partial … properties of the optimum. First, the optimal tax system is described by a multidimensional version of Diamond’s (1998) and Saez …

We provide experimental evidence on the emergence of redistributive societies. Individuals first vote on redistribution … the time when they choose a distribution rule and find that there is more redistribution behind a veil of ignorance than … under full information. However, the scope of redistribution is less sensitive towards the degree of uncertainty than …

Recent books by Thomas Piketty (Piketty, 2014) and Anthony Atkinson (Atkinson, 2015) have brought the annual wealth tax … back on the policy agenda. Both authors suggest using the annual wealth tax to supplement the redistributional effects of … the income tax, assigning it a role as a redistributional backstop mechanism. However, when measured against annual income …

Does parental wealth inequality impact next generation labor income inequality? And does a tax on parental wealth …. The estimated hypothetical wage distribution without the wealth tax is more unequal. Moreover, suggestive evidence …

This paper examines the effects of a unilateral reform of the redistribution policy in an economy open to international … under international trade compared to autarky, a unilateral tax increase leads to a less pronounced decline in aggregate … tax rates. We highlight as a key mechanism a tax-induced reduction in the market size of the reforming country relative to …

, the effectiveness of the electricity tariff as a redistribution device is questionable in the presence of a progressive … income tax schedule. To shed light on this controversy, we structurally estimate a model that combines public utility pricing … 2013, including detailed energy consumption and household income and tax payment characteristics. While the theoretical …

standards. The workhorse models of optimal income taxation call for more redistribution as inequality rises. By contrast, living … the optimal income tax problem by means of non-homothetic preferences. In a Mirrlees setup, we show that rising living …. Rising living standards dampen by at least 25% the desired increase in redistribution due to rising inequality. …

I analyze the dynamic effects of tax competition on public budget deficits. I find that stronger tax competition leads … mobility, further liberalization leads to external imbalances and diverging fiscal deficits while corporate tax rates converge …. Consistent with theory, I find that stronger tax competition increases deficits in a sample of OECD countries, controlling for …