Tax In History: Some Notes on Luigi Einaudi and the Legacy of His ‘Principles of Public Finance’. A Fiscal Mythoclast in Retrospect

Abstract

This year marks the ninetieth anniversary of Principî di scienza della finanza by Luigi Einaudi. This work is one among many by this prominent Italian fiscal polymath, yet it is especially illustrative of many of his more remarkable contributions to the public finance and tax law discourse. As such, it can be considered an important chapter in Einaudi’s work if not a milestone. In this respect, the book offers the opportunity to revisit some of his most well-known and influential contributions along with a reconsideration of certain idées reçues that appear to surround his legacy. In either direction along these reading itineraries, it is impressive how many of the propositions emerging from the pages of the Principî appear to be topical and, in some way, refreshing in connection with much of the ongoing (international) tax policy debate. Einaudi actually had a penchant for debunking myths and illusions, an exercise which has not lost its topicality and relevance. Luigi Einaudi, History of Economic Thought, Public Finance, Optimal Theory of Taxation, Capital Taxation, Tax Amortization, International Double Taxation, Exchange of Information