This paper studies shifts in the consumption bundle when consumption is subject to habit formation, and consumers do not internalize this habit formation process. Habits are good-specific, or 'deep', and cause persistence in good-specific consumption. In addition, at the aggregate level, habits...

Humans cooperate a great deal in economic activity, but our two major models of equilibrium – Walrasian competitive in markets and Nash in games – portray us as only non-cooperative. In earlier work, I have proposed a model of cooperative decision making (Kantian optimization); here, I embed...

In light of the increasing inequality in many countries, this paper analyzes redistributive charitable giving from the rich to the poor in a model of optimal nonlinear income taxation. Our framework integrates public and private redistribution, the warm glow of giving and stigma of receiving...

When policymakers look to trim fat from the federal government they too often ignore half the problem: the vast and complicated set of spending programs administered by the IRS. These programs are often referred to as tax expenditures, but this paper argues that they should be viewed just like...

This article calls into question the Pigovian justifications for higher taxes on goods and services that generate negative externalities. Insisting on a Pigovian tax as a precautionary measure only makes sense if it replaces all preexisting subsidies, taxes, and regulations rather than being...

Optimal policy rules - including those regarding income taxation, commodity taxation, public goods, and externalities - are typically derived in models with homogeneous preferences. This article reconsiders many central results for the case in which preferences for commodities, public goods, and...

In this paper we develop a model in which students choose their university coursework based on both investment and consumption incentives. We show that these education decisions are socially inefficient. This result is driven by the fact that students do not consider an externality in the...

Taxation affects the allocation of talented individuals across professions by blunting material incentives and thus magnifying non-pecuniary incentives of pursuing a “calling.” Estimates from the literature suggest high-paying professions have negative externalities, whereas low-paying...

The burning of fossil fuels not only causes CO2 emissions but at the same time impairs local environmental quality such as ambient air quality. The present paper analyzes the possible distortion arising from international trade in CO2 emissions when local externalities persist. It is...

Each year the federal individual income tax delivers over $500 billion worth of incentives intended to encourage socially beneficial activities. Despite their efficiency rationale and substantial price tag, relatively little attention has been paid to the question of what is the most efficient...