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Gini and Optimal Income Taxation by Rank

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  • Laurent Simula
  • Alain Trannoy

Abstract

We solve the nonlinear income tax program for rank-dependent social welfare functions, expressing the trade-off between size and inequality using the Gini and related families of positional indices. Absent bunching, ranks in the actual and optimal allocations are invariant. Exploiting this feature, we provide new, simple, and intuitive tax formulas for both the quasilinear and additive cases and new comparative static results. Our approach makes insights from optimal taxation more widely accessible. In some of our simulations the actual US tax policy is close to being optimal—except at the top, where optimal rates are much higher than in actuality.

Suggested Citation

  • Laurent Simula & Alain Trannoy, 2022. "Gini and Optimal Income Taxation by Rank," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 14(3), pages 352-379, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:aea:aejpol:v:14:y:2022:i:3:p:352-79
    DOI: 10.1257/pol.20200272
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    Cited by:

    1. Morten Nyborg Støstad & Frank Cowell, 2021. "Inequality as an Externality: Consequences for Tax Design," PSE Working Papers halshs-03495989, HAL.
    2. Mikhail Lvovitch Dorofeev, 2021. "Does Income Inequality Create Excessive Threats to the Sustainable Development of Russia? Evidence from Intercountry Comparisons via Analysis of Inequality Heatmaps," Economies, MDPI, vol. 9(4), pages 1-17, November.
    3. Laurent Simula & Alain Trannoy, 2020. "Bunching and Rank-Dependent Optimal Income Taxation," CESifo Working Paper Series 8443, CESifo.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
    • D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
    • H21 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Efficiency; Optimal Taxation
    • H24 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Personal Income and Other Nonbusiness Taxes and Subsidies
    • K34 - Law and Economics - - Other Substantive Areas of Law - - - Tax Law

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