Theory and Practice of Excise Taxation Smoking, Drinking, Gambling, Polluting, and Driving

Excise taxes are not only convenient sources of government revenue, they can also be designed to reflect the external costs of excisable products, such as global warming, acid rain, traffic congestion, and the costs of cigarette and alcohol consumption. This book by internationally recognized experts analyzes the art of excise taxation, providing a systematic, insightful, and often provocative treatment of a major fiscal instrument that policy-makers often neglect, and that gets little attention in the professional literature.

Sijbren Cnossen is Professor of Economics at the University of Maastricht and has held appointments at Erasmus University Rotterdam, Harvard Law School and the Law School of New York University. He is a research associate of a number of institutions, including CESifo, Munich and has previously held positions with the International Monetary Fund and the Dutch Tax Service.