Tax Policy and the Environment

This paper provides a framework for examining environment taxes. It reviews the theoretical efficiency of three types of environment taxes: taxes on emissions or Pigouvian taxes; taxes on productive inputs or consumer goods whose use is related to environmental damage; and environment-related provisions in other taxes. A survey of environment taxes in 42 countries--drawn from developing countries, economies in transition, and industrial countries--illustrates that the use of environment taxes differs dramatically from the recommendations of environment tax theory. This divergence between the theory and practice of environment taxes can be attributed to several factors; environment taxes are difficult to implement, there are many factors that impede their effectiveness, and their introduction may be discouraged by their implications for other policy objectives.

Fiscal Reforms in Low-Income Countries

The reform of fiscal policies and institutions lies at the heart of structural adjustment in developing countries. Although the immediate aim of such reform is to reduce fiscal imbalances to achieve macroeconomic stability, the long-term goal is to secure more durable improvements in fiscal performance. This study reviews the fiscal reform experience of 36 low-income developing countries that undertook macroeconomic and structural adjustment in the context of the IMF's Structural Adjustment Facility and Enhanced Structural Adjustment Facility during the period of 1985-95.Developing countries;expenditure, tax administration, tax revenue, wage, expenditures, wages, salaries, expenditure policy, capital expenditure, tax system, fiscal adjustment, tax reform, total expenditure, tax reforms, public spending, expenditure management, public expenditure, tax systems, tax policy, structural adjustment, benefits, taxes on domestic, taxation, fiscal consolidation, fiscal policy, trade taxes, taxes on international trade, tax collection, revenue collection, tax structure, expenditure reform, domestic financing, tax rates, fiscal deficit, tax base, tax administration reforms, personal income tax, expenditure control, expenditure cuts, expenditure composition, fiscal imbalances, foreign borrowing, fiscal deficits, sales tax, accumulation of arrears, public expenditure management, tax administration reform, fiscal balance, fiscal accounts, international trade taxes, export tax, taxes on income, tariff structure, tax collections, personal income tax rate, tariff rates, tax structures, corporate income tax, income taxes, tax receipts, wage increases, civil service, fiscal reforms, public expenditures, fiscal performance, fiscal operations, government spending, central bank, taxpayer units, tariff rate, tax policy reforms, expenditure policies, government expenditures, fiscal affairs department, fiscal targets, fiscal affairs, expenditure outcomes, tax bases, fiscal developments, capital expenditures, tax burden, tax officials, consumption taxes, tax changes, domestic tax, marginal tax rates, tax payments, direct taxes, export taxes, vat rate, large taxpayers, taxpayer registration, sales taxes, administrative improvements, presumptive taxes, sales taxation, trade taxation, tax ratios, excise taxes, expenditure components, composition of public spending, expenditure productivity, expenditure efficiency, data on expenditures, fiscal policies, public sector wage, expenditure objectives, tax effort, average revenue ratios, payroll, health expenditures, severance payments, expenditure control mechanisms, wage policy, fiscal reform, public expenditure review, fiscal consolidation efforts, budgetary institutions, budget deficit, wage structure, fiscal sustainability, administrative reforms, administrative capacity, civil service reform, civil service payroll, expenditure tracking, expenditure items, institutional reforms, institutional capacity, expenditure management system, redundant workers, civil servants, civil service reforms, categories of expenditure, weak expenditure control, total expenditures, wage reductions, minimum wage, wage levels, expenditures on health, expenditure ceilings, public sector wage bill, payroll systems, teacher salaries, compensation packages, expenditure allocations, cutting expenditures, early retirement, wage scale, expenditure commitments, recurrent expenditure, fiscal stress, intergovernmental transfers, reforms of tax administration, local government spending, fiscal balances, debt service, budget allocations, fiscal years, budget constraint, fiscal component, structural fiscal, aggregate fiscal, government revenue, fiscal outcomes, budget deficits, fiscal data, increase in capital spending, budgetary allocations, fiscal savings, fiscal behavior, fiscal transition, public finances, fiscal objectives, expenditure adjustment, fiscal cost, fiscal program, fiscal pressures, fiscal instruments, social expenditures, fiscal accounting, breakdown of expenditures, tax revenue collections, dividend payments, tax area, individual income tax, domestic taxation, corporate income taxes, tax identification number, taxpayer identification numbers, tax rate reductions, indirect taxes, business income tax, direct taxation, vat system, excise tax, comprehensive tax reforms, tax revenue ratio, domestic taxes, direct tax, domestic tax base, tax arrears, tax reform efforts, external financing, consumption tax, corporate tax rate, taxpayer identification, domestic borrowing, payment arrears