Can the principles of environmental taxation and road pricing be taken as guiding principles in the design of excise taxes -- and, especially, harmonised European excises? The article examines this question, reaching several conclusions: (i) excise taxes levied on fuels can approximate fairly well the costs of carbon emissions (at least as far as carbon sequestering and carbon offsetting do not become widespread and substantial practices); (2) the same is not true in the case of the costs of the emissions of other pollutants and the use of roads (building and congestion costs); (iii) pricing (internalisation) of these costs requires more flexible instruments with a better adherence to reponsibility in the generation of costs -- which shows considerable variation in relation to sources, agents, place, and time; (iv) fuel taxes, hovever, can perform a useful revenue raising (i.e. distributive) function in the funding of road construction and maintenance.
Una nota critica su tassazione ambientale, tariffazione delle strade e armonizzazione europea delle accise sui prodotti energetici
PIACENTINO, Diego
2005-01-01
Abstract
Can the principles of environmental taxation and road pricing be taken as guiding principles in the design of excise taxes -- and, especially, harmonised European excises? The article examines this question, reaching several conclusions: (i) excise taxes levied on fuels can approximate fairly well the costs of carbon emissions (at least as far as carbon sequestering and carbon offsetting do not become widespread and substantial practices); (2) the same is not true in the case of the costs of the emissions of other pollutants and the use of roads (building and congestion costs); (iii) pricing (internalisation) of these costs requires more flexible instruments with a better adherence to reponsibility in the generation of costs -- which shows considerable variation in relation to sources, agents, place, and time; (iv) fuel taxes, hovever, can perform a useful revenue raising (i.e. distributive) function in the funding of road construction and maintenance.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
