Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/46402 
Year of Publication: 
2011
Series/Report no.: 
CESifo Working Paper No. 3342
Publisher: 
Center for Economic Studies and ifo Institute (CESifo), Munich
Abstract: 
This paper extends the Mirrlees (1971) model of optimal income redistribution with optimal corrective taxes to internalize consumption externalities. It is demonstrated that the optimal second-best tax on an externality-generating good should not be corrected for the marginal cost of public funds. The reason is that the marginal cost of public funds equals unity in the optimal tax system, since marginal distortions of taxation are equal to marginal distributional gains. The Pigouvian tax needs to be modified, however, if polluting commodities or environmental quality are more complementary to leisure than non-polluting commodities are.
Subjects: 
marginal cost of public funds
optimal environmental taxation
optimal redistribution
externalities
JEL: 
D62
H21
H23
Document Type: 
Working Paper
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