Uncertainty, Welfare Cost, and the "adaptability" of U.S. Corporate Taxes

Uncertainty, Welfare Cost, and the Author: Don Fullerton
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Corporations
Languages : en
Pages : 36

Get Book Here

Book Description
Alternative corporate tax systems differ in their ability to adapt to changes in the rate of inflation. Absent complete indexing of depreciation allowances, a tax system may use the expected inflation rate to set accelerated depreciation allowances in a way that minimizes the welfare loss from them is allocation of capital. This welfare loss is a nonlinear function of the assumed inflation rate, however, so the welfare loss at the expected inflation rate may be quite different from the expected welfare loss. We compute these two welfare concepts for each of three alternative corporate tax schemes in the U.S. and for two different relationships between inflation and interest rates. One important finding is that the Auerbach-Jorgenson first year recovery plan is not equivalent to indexing as is often claimed, if uncertainty about inflation implies uncertainty about the real after-tax discount rate.

Uncertainty, Welfare Cost, and the "adaptability" of U.S. Corporate Taxes

Uncertainty, Welfare Cost, and the Author: Don Fullerton
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Corporations
Languages : en
Pages : 36

Get Book Here

Book Description
Alternative corporate tax systems differ in their ability to adapt to changes in the rate of inflation. Absent complete indexing of depreciation allowances, a tax system may use the expected inflation rate to set accelerated depreciation allowances in a way that minimizes the welfare loss from them is allocation of capital. This welfare loss is a nonlinear function of the assumed inflation rate, however, so the welfare loss at the expected inflation rate may be quite different from the expected welfare loss. We compute these two welfare concepts for each of three alternative corporate tax schemes in the U.S. and for two different relationships between inflation and interest rates. One important finding is that the Auerbach-Jorgenson first year recovery plan is not equivalent to indexing as is often claimed, if uncertainty about inflation implies uncertainty about the real after-tax discount rate.

Limits and Problems of Taxation

Limits and Problems of Taxation PDF Author: Finn R. Forsund
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1349080942
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 207

Get Book Here

Book Description
This volume brings together a number of new studies concerned with some of the topical problems of taxation. In Part I, limits of taxation are considered from the viewpoint of normative tax theory, its relation to the 'hidden' economy, and in terms of empirical estimates of the effects of taxes. Part II contains three theoretical studies which extend the theory of income taxation and redistribution. Part III deals with the corporate tax and contains both theoretical and empirical contributions. In conclusion, Part IV is devoted to two analyses of alternatives to income and corporate taxation. The authors represent a number of different countries and viewpoints.

NBER Reporter

NBER Reporter PDF Author: National Bureau of Economic Research
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 816

Get Book Here

Book Description


Fiscal Policies for Development and Climate Action

Fiscal Policies for Development and Climate Action PDF Author: Miria A. Pigato
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 9781464813580
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 240

Get Book Here

Book Description
This report provides actionable advice on how to design and implement fiscal policies for both development and climate action. Building on more than two decades of research in development and environmental economics, it argues that well-designed environmental tax reforms are especially valuable in developing countries, where they can reduce emissions, increase domestic revenues, and generate positive welfare effects such as cleaner water, safer roads, and improvements in human health. Moreover, these reforms need not harm competitiveness. New empirical evidence from Indonesia and Mexico suggests that under certain conditions, raising fuel prices can actually increase firm productivity. Finally, the report discusses the role of fiscal policy in strengthening resilience to climate change. It provides evidence that preventive public investments and measures to build fiscal buffers can help safeguard stability and growth in the face of rising climate risks. In this way, environmental tax reforms and climate risk-management strategies can lay the much-needed fiscal foundation for development and climate action.

Tariffs, Subsidies, and Welfare with Endogenous Policy

Tariffs, Subsidies, and Welfare with Endogenous Policy PDF Author: Dani Rodrik
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Commercial policy
Languages : en
Pages : 78

Get Book Here

Book Description


Tax Neutrality and Intangible Capital

Tax Neutrality and Intangible Capital PDF Author: Don Fullerton
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Capital
Languages : en
Pages : 58

Get Book Here

Book Description
Many studies measure capital stocks and effective tax rates for different industries, but they consider only tangible assets such as equipment, structures, inventories, and land. Some of these studies also have estimated that the welfare cost of tax differences among these assets under prior law is about $10 billion per year or 13 percent of all corporate income tax revenue. Since the investment tax credit was available only for equipment, its repeal raises the effective rate of taxation of equipment toward that of other assets and virtually eliminates this welfare cost. However, firms also own intangible assets such as trademarks, copyrights, patents, a good reputation, or general production expertise. This paper provides alternative measures of the intangible capital stock, and it investigates implications for distortions caused by taxes. The existence of intangible capital markedly alters welfare cost calculations. Investments in advertising and R&D are expensed, so the effective rate of tax on these assets is less than that on equipment under prior law. With large differences between these assets and other tangible assets, we find that the welfare cost measure under prior law increases to $13 billion per year. Repeal of the investment credit taxes equipment more like other tangible assets but less like intangible assets. The welfare cost still falls, to about $7 billion per year, but it is no longer "virtually eliminated." With additional sources of intangible capital, credit repeal could actually increase welfare costs. Finally, however, the Tax Reform Act of 1986 not only repeals the investment tax credit but reduces rates as well. Efficiency always increases in this model because the taxation of tangible assets is reduced toward that of intangible assets.

The Welfare Effects of Trade and Capital Market Liberalization

The Welfare Effects of Trade and Capital Market Liberalization PDF Author: Sebastian Edwards
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Capital
Languages : en
Pages : 46

Get Book Here

Book Description
This paper deals with the dynamics of trade and capital account liberalization in a developing country. The welfare consequences of trade and capital account liberalization under alternative sequencing scenarios are investigated. We draw on standard trade theory results to show that the opening of the capital account in the presence of trade distortions may be welfare reducing if foreign borrowing is used to increase investment. However we demonstrate that this welfare reducing effect of opening the capital account will not occur if shadow prices are used to guide investment decisions. It is then shown that if capital market restrictions fall disproportionally on investment (as opposed to consumption) a gradual reduction of import tariffs is superior to an abrupt trade liberalization.

Trading and the Tax Shelter Value of Depreciable Real Estate

Trading and the Tax Shelter Value of Depreciable Real Estate PDF Author: Patric H. Hendershott
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Real property and taxation
Languages : en
Pages : 38

Get Book Here

Book Description
For well-diversified investors in depreciable real estate, the trading decision may be made with the sole objective of maximizing the property's depreciation tax shelter net of all capital gain taxes and transaction costs. This paper develops a dynamic programming model in which the optimal trading strategies and depreciation methods of all investors in a property are simultaneously determined. The effects of inflation, depreciation, recapture and choice of depreciation method are analyzed, and the costs of suboptimal trading are measured. The model is applied to both conventional residential and commercial income properties under post-ERTA tax rules. At single digitinflation rates, properties are traded multiple times, and the costs of suboptimal trading are significant.

Restricted Cost Functions and the Rate of Return to Quasi-fixed Factors, with an Application to R&D and Capital in the Bell System

Restricted Cost Functions and the Rate of Return to Quasi-fixed Factors, with an Application to R&D and Capital in the Bell System PDF Author: Mark Schankerman
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Capital investments
Languages : en
Pages : 58

Get Book Here

Book Description


Publications

Publications PDF Author: National Bureau of Economic Research
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 128

Get Book Here

Book Description