Ecological Tax Reform

A growing international trend is for governments to shift the burden of taxation away from productive activities and onto pollutants. This trend is rooted in the recognition that taxes not only raise necessary revenue for governments, but also discourage the taxed activity. When levied on productive activities, taxes place an extra burden on the economy, whereas when levied on pollution, taxes help to control it. These principles are simple and powerful, but they come with a suite of ancillary issues, including concerns about fairness, economic efficiency, jobs, and disruption during the period of transition to the new taxes.

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