Rethinking capital and wealth taxation

IF 2.1 2区经济学 Q2 ECONOMICS

Oxford Review of Economic Policy Pub Date : 2023-08-18 DOI:10.1093/oxrep/grad026

T. Piketty, Emmanuel Saez, G. Zucman

{"title":"Rethinking capital and wealth taxation","authors":"T. Piketty, Emmanuel Saez, G. Zucman","doi":"10.1093/oxrep/grad026","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"\n This paper reviews recent developments in the theory and practice of optimal capital taxation. We emphasize three main rationales for capital taxation. First, the frontier between capital and labour income flows is often fuzzy, thereby lending support to a broad-based, comprehensive income tax. Next, the very notions of income and consumption flows are difficult to define and measure for top wealth holders where capital gains due to asset price effects dwarf ordinary income and consumption flows. Therefore the proper way to tax billionaires is a progressive wealth tax. Finally, as individuals cannot choose their parents, there are strong meritocratic reasons why we should tax inherited wealth more than earned income or self-made wealth for which individuals can be held responsible, at least in part. This implies that the ideal fiscal system should also include a progressive inheritance tax, in addition to progressive income and wealth taxes. We then confront our prescriptions with historical experience. Although there are significant differences, we argue that observed fiscal systems in modern democracies bear important similarities with this ideal triptych.","PeriodicalId":48024,"journal":{"name":"Oxford Review of Economic Policy","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1000,"publicationDate":"2023-08-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"21","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Oxford Review of Economic Policy","FirstCategoryId":"96","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1093/oxrep/grad026","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"ECONOMICS","Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 21

Abstract

This paper reviews recent developments in the theory and practice of optimal capital taxation. We emphasize three main rationales for capital taxation. First, the frontier between capital and labour income flows is often fuzzy, thereby lending support to a broad-based, comprehensive income tax. Next, the very notions of income and consumption flows are difficult to define and measure for top wealth holders where capital gains due to asset price effects dwarf ordinary income and consumption flows. Therefore the proper way to tax billionaires is a progressive wealth tax. Finally, as individuals cannot choose their parents, there are strong meritocratic reasons why we should tax inherited wealth more than earned income or self-made wealth for which individuals can be held responsible, at least in part. This implies that the ideal fiscal system should also include a progressive inheritance tax, in addition to progressive income and wealth taxes. We then confront our prescriptions with historical experience. Although there are significant differences, we argue that observed fiscal systems in modern democracies bear important similarities with this ideal triptych.

查看原文本刊更多论文

重新思考资本和财富税

本文综述了最优资本征税理论和实践的最新进展。我们强调资本税的三个主要理由。首先，资本和劳动收入流动之间的界限往往是模糊的，从而为广泛的综合所得税提供了支持。其次，收入和消费流动的概念很难定义和衡量，因为资产价格效应导致的资本收益使普通收入和消费流动相形见绌。因此，对亿万富翁征税的正确方式是累进财富税。最后，由于个人无法选择自己的父母，我们有充分的精英主义理由，为什么我们应该对继承的财富征税，而不是对个人可以承担(至少部分)责任的劳动收入或白手起家的财富征税。这意味着，除了累进所得税和财富税之外，理想的财政体系还应该包括累进遗产税。然后我们用历史经验来面对我们的处方。尽管存在显著差异，但我们认为，观察到的现代民主国家的财政制度与这一理想的三联画有着重要的相似之处。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

求助全文

约1分钟内获得全文求助全文

来源期刊

Oxford Review of Economic Policy ECONOMICS-

CiteScore

12.50

自引率

1.50%

发文量

期刊介绍： The Oxford Review of Economic Policy is a refereed journal which is published quarterly. Each issue concentrates on a current theme in economic policy, with a balance between macro- and microeconomics, and comprises an assessment and a number of articles. It gives a valuable appraisal of economic policies worldwide. While the analysis is challenging and at the forefront of current thinking, articles are presented in non-technical language to make them readily accessible to all readers. The Oxford Review is aimed at a wide audience including government, business and policy-makers, as well as academics and students. It is required reading for those who need to know where research is leading.