4 ms·
There's a huge literature on optimal tax policies, usually focused on more specific questions, so I'm not aware of a good survey paper on what economists think
by mjn 13y ago
There's a huge literature on optimal tax policies, usually focused on more specific questions, so I'm not aware of a good survey paper on what economists think of wealth taxes generally. However, two specific questions you could look into, each of which have significant supporters on both sides:
1. What are the relative merits of inheritance taxes and wealth taxes, from the perspective of economic efficiency and/or intergenerational egalitarianism?
2. What are the relative merits of wealth taxes vs. capital-gains taxes? Roughly, is it preferable to tax capital annually based on its current value, or to tax realized gains in capital at the time of realization?
The current real-world situation is that inheritance and capital-gains taxes are fairly common, while wealth taxes are uncommon, and there's some disagreement over whether that is the right choice.