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The optimal income tax when poverty is a public"bad"

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  • Wane, Waly

Abstract

The author considers poverty as an aggregate negative externality that affects people in different ways, depending on their aversion to poverty. If society is on average averse to poverty, then the optimal income tax schedule displays negative marginal tax rates, at least for less skilled individuals. Negative marginal tax rates play the role of a Pigouvian earnings subsidy, fostering the supply of poor individuals to provide labor. The result of no distortion at the endpoints, which is therefore violated, can be restored once the focus is shifted from individual to social distortions.

Suggested Citation

  • Wane, Waly, 2000. "The optimal income tax when poverty is a public"bad"," Policy Research Working Paper Series 2270, The World Bank.
    • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:2270
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    Cited by:

    1. Johann K. Brunner, 2003. "Optimale direkte und indirekte Steuern bei unterschiedlicher Anfangsausstattung," Economics working papers 2003-10, Department of Economics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Austria.
    2. Vassili N. Kolokoltsov & Egor M. Dranov & Denis E. Piskun, 2024. "A new approach to the theory of optimal income tax," Papers 2408.14476, arXiv.org.
    3. Constantine Angyridis & Brennan Scott Thompson, 2016. "Negative income taxes, inequality and poverty," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 49(3), pages 1016-1034, August.
    4. Pirttila, Jukka & Tuomala, Matti, 2004. "Poverty alleviation and tax policy," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 48(5), pages 1075-1090, October.
    5. Henry de Frahan, Lancelot & Maniquet, François, 2021. "Preference responsibility versus poverty reduction in the taxation of labor incomes," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 197(C).
    6. Maniquet, François & Neumann, Dirk, 2016. "Well-Being, Poverty and Labor Income Taxation: Theory and Application to Europe and the U.S," IZA Discussion Papers 10181, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    7. Cassone, Alberto & Marchese, Carla, 2001. "Should the death tax die? And should it leave an inheritance?," POLIS Working Papers 22, Institute of Public Policy and Public Choice - POLIS.
    8. Xi CHEN & Ioana SALAGEAN & Benteng ZOU, 2016. "Optimal Income Taxation for the Alleviation of Working-Poverty When Domestic Work is Rewarded," DEM Discussion Paper Series 16-01, Department of Economics at the University of Luxembourg.
    9. Darío Maldonado, 2006. "Social security, income taxation and poverty alleviation," Revista de Economía del Rosario, Universidad del Rosario, June.
    10. Louis Kaplow, 2022. "Optimal Income Taxation," NBER Working Papers 30199, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    11. Stefan Homburg, 2001. "The Optimal Income Tax: Restatement and Extensions," FinanzArchiv: Public Finance Analysis, Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 58(4), pages 363-395, November.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Environmental Economics&Policies; Economic Theory&Research; Health Economics&Finance; Achieving Shared Growth; Safety Nets and Transfers;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C72 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Game Theory and Bargaining Theory - - - Noncooperative Games
    • D82 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Asymmetric and Private Information; Mechanism Design
    • L14 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Transactional Relationships; Contracts and Reputation

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