IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/mfg/wpaper/71.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Eco-Fiscal Tools and Municipal Finance: Current Practices and Opportunities

Author

Listed:
  • Jean-Philippe Meloche
  • Fanny Tremblay-Racicot

    (University of Toronto)

Abstract

Eco-fiscal tools are tax measures that target behaviour or the consumption of goods or services that contribute to environmental degradation. These taxes, fees, or charges correct market price signals to help internalize the social and environmental costs of individual choices, while providing financial resources to supply public goods and services. In Canada, an important part of the eco-fiscal debate focuses on carbon emissions (such as the carbon market and carbon taxes). Although central governments are backtracking on efforts to limit environmental degradation, municipalities are playing an increasingly important role in the eco-fiscal field. The tools they are using do not raise significant revenues, but they are helping to change behaviours. This paper explains the main arguments for the use of eco-fiscal tools and reviews the literature on their impact. It explores the range of eco-fiscal tools implemented by Canadian municipalities and proposes innovative tools that could be implemented in the future.

Suggested Citation

  • Jean-Philippe Meloche & Fanny Tremblay-Racicot, 2025. "Eco-Fiscal Tools and Municipal Finance: Current Practices and Opportunities," IMFG Papers 71, University of Toronto, Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance.
    • Handle: RePEc:mfg:wpaper:71
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://utoronto.scholaris.ca/server/api/core/bitstreams/6c8c9e8f-2943-4d58-884d-d807a376a0a9/content
    File Function: First version, 2025
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. repec:oup:ecpoli:v:21:y:2006:i:46:p:263-310 is not listed on IDEAS
    2. Georgina Santos & Gordon Fraser, 2006. "Road pricing: lessons from London [‘The impact of congestion charging on vehicle emissions in London’]," Economic Policy, CEPR, CESifo, Sciences Po;CES;MSH, vol. 21(46), pages 264-310.
    3. Doğan, Buhari & Chu, Lan Khanh & Ghosh, Sudeshna & Diep Truong, Huong Hoang & Balsalobre-Lorente, Daniel, 2022. "How environmental taxes and carbon emissions are related in the G7 economies?," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 187(C), pages 645-656.
    4. Karydas, Christos & Zhang, Lin, 2019. "Green tax reform, endogenous innovation and the growth dividend," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 158-181.
    5. Sen, Suphi & Vollebergh, Herman, 2018. "The effectiveness of taxing the carbon content of energy consumption," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 74-99.
    6. Arnott, Richard & de Palma, Andre & Lindsey, Robin, 1991. "A temporal and spatial equilibrium analysis of commuter parking," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 45(3), pages 301-335, August.
    7. He, Pinglin & Zhang, Shuhao & Wang, Lei & Ning, Jing, 2023. "Will environmental taxes help to mitigate climate change? A comparative study based on OECD countries," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 1440-1464.
    8. Eliasson, Jonas & Pyddoke, Roger & Swärdh, Jan-Erik, 2018. "Distributional effects of taxes on car fuel, use, ownership and purchases," Economics of Transportation, Elsevier, vol. 15(C), pages 1-15.
    9. Ellen M. Bruno & Katrina Jessoe, 2021. "Using Price Elasticities of Water Demand to Inform Policy," Annual Review of Resource Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 13(1), pages 427-441, October.
    10. Bel, Germà & Gradus, Raymond, 2016. "Effects of unit-based pricing on household waste collection demand: A meta-regression analysis," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 169-182.
    11. Green, Colin P. & Heywood, John S. & Navarro Paniagua, Maria, 2020. "Did the London congestion charge reduce pollution?," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    12. Ian W.H. Parry & Wallace E. Oates & Ian W.H. Parry & Wallace E. Oates, 2004. "Policy Analysis in the Presence of Distorting Taxes," Chapters, in: Environmental Policy and Fiscal Federalism, chapter 4, pages 67-77, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    13. Santos, Georgina & Behrendt, Hannah & Maconi, Laura & Shirvani, Tara & Teytelboym, Alexander, 2010. "Part I: Externalities and economic policies in road transport," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 28(1), pages 2-45.
    14. Lakhan, Calvin, 2015. "Evaluating the effects of unit based waste disposal schemes on the collection of household recyclables in Ontario, Canada," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 38-45.
    15. Jean-Philippe Meloche & Michael Robert-Angers & Luc Godbout, 2025. "Policy Forum: On the Way to a Distance-Based Tax?," Canadian Tax Journal, Canadian Tax Foundation, vol. 73(1), pages 57-75.
    16. Ding, Hongliang & Sze, N.N. & Li, Haojie & Guo, Yanyong, 2021. "Affected area and residual period of London Congestion Charging scheme on road safety," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 120-128.
    17. Haiying Liu & Muhammad Wasif Zafar & Avik Sinha & Irfan Khan, 2023. "The path to sustainable environment: Do environmental taxes and governance matter?," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(4), pages 2278-2290, August.
    18. Alex Anas & Robin Lindsey, 2011. "Reducing Urban Road Transportation Externalities: Road Pricing in Theory and in Practice," Review of Environmental Economics and Policy, Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 5(1), pages 66-88, Winter.
    19. Glomm, Gerhard & Kawaguchi, Daiji & Sepulveda, Facundo, 2008. "Green taxes and double dividends in a dynamic economy," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 30(1), pages 19-32.
    20. repec:bla:ecpoli:v:21:y:2006:i:46:p:263-310 is not listed on IDEAS
    21. Dimitropoulos, Alexandros & Oueslati, Walid & Sintek, Christina, 2018. "The rebound effect in road transport: A meta-analysis of empirical studies," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 163-179.
    22. Thornton Matheson, 2022. "Disposal is not free: fiscal instruments to internalize the environmental costs of solid waste," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 29(4), pages 1047-1073, August.
    23. Muhammad Farhan Bashir & Benjiang MA & Muhammad Shahbaz & Zhilun Jiao, 2020. "The nexus between environmental tax and carbon emissions with the roles of environmental technology and financial development," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(11), pages 1-20, November.
    24. Wang, Qian & Hubacek, Klaus & Feng, Kuishuang & Wei, Yi-Ming & Liang, Qiao-Mei, 2016. "Distributional effects of carbon taxation," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 184(C), pages 1123-1131.
    25. Alice Ciccone & Emilia Soldani, 2021. "Stick or Carrot? Asymmetric Responses to Vehicle Registration Taxes in Norway," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 80(1), pages 59-94, September.
    26. Benjamin, Emmanuel O. & Hall, Daniel & Sauer, Johannes & Buchenrieder, Gertrud, 2022. "Are carbon pricing policies on a path to failure in resource-dependent economies? A willingness-to-pay case study of Canada," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 162(C).
    27. Alvarez, Maximiliano, 2019. "Distributional effects of environmental taxation: An approximation with a meta-regression analysis," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 382-401.
    28. Segerson, Kathleen, 2020. "Local Environmental Policy in a Federal System: An Overview," Agricultural and Resource Economics Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 49(2), pages 196-208, August.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Vonk Noordegraaf, Diana & Annema, Jan Anne & van Wee, Bert, 2014. "Policy implementation lessons from six road pricing cases," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 172-191.
    2. Jean-Philippe Meloche, 2019. "Towards a New Era in Road Pricing? Lessons from the Experience of First Movers," CIRANO Working Papers 2019s-35, CIRANO.
    3. Leif Jacobs & Lara Quack & Mario Mechtel, 2021. "Distributional Effects of Carbon Pricing by Transport Fuel Taxation," Working Paper Series in Economics 405, University of Lüneburg, Institute of Economics.
    4. Jacobs, Leif & Quack, Lara & Mechtel, Mario, 2022. "Distributional effects of carbon pricing by transport fuel taxation," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 114(C).
    5. Josef Gotvald, 2024. "The role of environmental taxes and other political instruments on the road to climate neutrality [Role environmentálních daní a dalších politických nástrojů na cestě za klimatickou neutralitou]," Český finanční a účetní časopis, Prague University of Economics and Business, vol. 2024(1), pages 47-76.
    6. Tang, Cheng Keat, 2021. "The Cost of Traffic: Evidence from the London Congestion Charge," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 121(C).
    7. Alena Miftakhova & Clément Renoir, 2021. "Economic Growth and Equity in Anticipation of Climate Policy," CER-ETH Economics working paper series 21/355, CER-ETH - Center of Economic Research (CER-ETH) at ETH Zurich.
    8. Evangelinos, Christos & Tscharaktschiew, Stefan & Marcucci, Edoardo & Gatta, Valerio, 2018. "Pricing workplace parking via cash-out: Effects on modal choice and implications for transport policy," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 369-380.
    9. Edoardo Croci & Aldo Ravazzi Douvan, 2016. "Urban Road Pricing: A Comparative Study on the Experiences of London, Stockholm and Milan," IEFE Working Papers 85, IEFE, Center for Research on Energy and Environmental Economics and Policy, Universita' Bocconi, Milano, Italy.
    10. Vosough, Shaghayegh & de Palma, André & Lindsey, Robin, 2022. "Pricing vehicle emissions and congestion externalities using a dynamic traffic network simulator," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 161(C), pages 1-24.
    11. Dorman,Peter, 2022. "Alligators in the Arctic and How to Avoid Them," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781316516270, November.
    12. Morton, Craig & Ali, Yasir, 2025. "The impact of congestion charging on car ownership: Evidence from a quasi-natural experiment," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 160(C), pages 181-191.
    13. Erdogan, Sinan, 2024. "Linking green fiscal policy, energy, economic growth, population dynamics, and environmental degradation: Empirical evidence from Germany," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    14. Javed, Aamir & Rapposelli, Agnese & Khan, Feroz & Javed, Asif, 2023. "The impact of green technology innovation, environmental taxes, and renewable energy consumption on ecological footprint in Italy: Fresh evidence from novel dynamic ARDL simulations," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 191(C).
    15. Dianfei Luan & Hamid Mahmood & Samia Khalid & Bashir Ahmad Fida, 2025. "Asymmetric Impact of Green Innovation and Taxation on Environmental Sustainability in Developing Countries," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 16(1), pages 5216-5237, March.
    16. Luechinger, Simon & Roth, Florian, 2016. "Effects of a mileage tax for trucks," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 1-15.
    17. Tunahan Degirmenci & Mucahit Aydin, 2024. "Testing the load capacity curve hypothesis with green innovation, green tax, green energy, and technological diffusion: A novel approach to Kyoto protocol," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 32(5), pages 4931-4945, October.
    18. Li Yang & Irum Shahzadi & Xiaowei Feng & Abdelmohsen A. Nassani, 2024. "Do climate change policies, and environmental regulations affect the financial performance: policy-based analysis in context of green innovation," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 26(12), pages 32137-32161, December.
    19. Tscharaktschiew, Stefan & Reimann, Felix, 2021. "On employer-paid parking and parking (cash-out) policy: A formal synthesis of different perspectives," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 499-516.
    20. Karmaker, Shamal Chandra & Hosan, Shahadat & Chapman, Andrew J. & Saha, Bidyut Baran, 2021. "The role of environmental taxes on technological innovation," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 232(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • H23 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Externalities; Redistributive Effects; Environmental Taxes and Subsidies
    • H71 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - State and Local Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue
    • R51 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Regional Government Analysis - - - Finance in Urban and Rural Economies

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:mfg:wpaper:71. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Enid Slack (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/imfutca.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.